


Husbands of Circumstance

by bernieloverstuff, ngm



Category: Batman - All Media Types
Genre: Angst, Blood Drinking, M/M, Repressed Emotions, Slow Burn, Slowest Burn, Vampire AU, situationally repressed feelings, slow burn angst, the long haul slow burn, typical vampire stuff
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-04-08
Updated: 2017-04-29
Packaged: 2018-10-16 06:39:26
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 8
Words: 23,054
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10565733
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/bernieloverstuff/pseuds/bernieloverstuff, https://archiveofourown.org/users/ngm/pseuds/ngm
Summary: Set in the Vampire AU that @gayforbatjokes has created-- The Joker tells the somber tale of Bane and Harvey to his intrigued and irritated lover and how it took almost sixty years (thanks to one bitter piece of shit clown) for them to finally become mates.





	1. Another One Bites The Dust

**Author's Note:**

> This whole thing started as a coy comment that snowballed into a full-blown saga.

 

 

 

There was not much a man such as the behemoth known as Bane really ever asked for. He was self-sufficient, he was quiet. He kept to himself and for all intents and purposes, was a fairly introspective creature. 

He could also pick up a six foot, two hundred and fifty-pound man and snap his spine like a chopstick. He could take on a swarm of lesser beasts without exerting much force at all, like swatting flies.

It really was entertaining to watch.

Especially those foolish enough to not acknowledge the quite beast, to assume he was slow and unobservant-- Oh, how the Joker LOVED that! 

And naturally, he had grown to become fond of the massive brute, his trusted number Two. 

He especially adored how much his Bruce got all wound up when he'd feed-- oh, but you know who put Bruce to shame was Harv. 

Ahhhh... that glorious situation. 

\- - -

Bruce looked up at his mate from where he lounged on his stomach, arms folded beneath his head as he listened to the older vampire regale this tale. The Joker liked to tell him stories of 'the family', as he liked to call it. Tonight, was the story of Bane. 

\- - - 

The luchador remained loyal, noble in a way, ever obedient and unquestioning. Certainly, in the beginning, there had been contention but eventually, the Joker and his Bane had grown fond enough of each other to have a palatable, brotherly sort of faux-animosity. They rarely spoke of the night that the Joker had for some bizarre reason, taken pity on his mangled form, but the big brute would always oblige his master.

\- - -

"Well, you see..." The Joker began, leaning back against the mountain of pillows on their vast bed, gesticulating wildly as he carried on, a sort of guilting looking jeer on his overly expressive face. 

\- - -

There had been a mild interest in Bane if he were being honest. The man was massive, he was foreign (Wasn't everybody though?) and thusly exotic in a way... but the notion that he might be good, useful (And obedient!) muscle had perhaps, crossed his mind perchance. 

Maybe it had even caused him to think of a way to stir a shit storm that he had been watching brew in the months that he had been in this ramshackle excuse for a prison. 

Perhaps he'd been the sinister whisper in ears of the weaker minded, in those fools that had been shortly thereafter dispatched by the freshly rejuvenated behemoth. 

No, that had not been uttered until some sort of casual, conversation distracting moment of carelessness, nearly eighty years later but Bane couldn't find the desire to be irate with his master over that... 

No, he'd been silently seething since the mid-1940's,  brooding about--

\- - - 

"Harvey?" Bruce asked, lifting his head off of his arms a little to regard his lover. 

"Awww, how'd you know?" The clown whined, feeling like his punchline had been taken. 

The younger vampire narrowed his eyes, then shook his head and lay it back down on his forearms. 

"Don't be an idiot..." He said while smothering a smile into his arm, an eyebrow raising as he waited for Joker to continue. 

"Can't not, my dear!" Was his tittered reply with a pat-pat to Bruce's black head and he left his hand in that thick hair, continuing. "As I was saying..." 

\- - - 

It was 1946, a pretty good time to be on the bustling East Coast of the United States! Hell, anywhere but the panhandle provided fairly decent digs, which was a delightful and welcome change to the misfortune that fell the entire world during that whole, y'know, World War II situation; but the East was robust with wealth and progress and the delightfully wicked men and women who sought to take advantage of it. 

Harvey Apollo Dent was not necessarily one of those people, at the beginning-- but they had met the man before he was disfigured in an accident he rarely spoke of. In fact, when he had first crossed paths with the Joker's intimately small clan, it had been for a brief moment on a dark night, on a street that shouldn't have been very busy in a lesser borough of Bludhaven. 

He had fired a gun into a bar that he'd stormed out of and the Joker couldn't help but grin as he saw the flashes of gunfire and heard the frantic screams, however, the really interesting part was the way he'd *felt* his second in command tense, despite being several feet behind him. The way he'd almost heard the breath whoosh out of the massive creature. Ooooh.... that was interesting and it was the most expression he'd peripherally witnessed out of the behemoth. 

It'd actually caused the head of the clan to whip his head back to stare at his masked companion and in the time he'd gawked and turned back to look at the gorgeous-looking, dapper gangster, he'd hopped into a waiting 

They had, whether it was serendipity or luck or obsession, continued to peripherally cross paths with the pretty-boy criminal and naturally, every time. 

\- - - 

"Was it Bane? Who was telling you to go to where Harvey was?" 

The Joker wrinkled his nose, eyes narrowing as he leaned forward and pat at Bruce's cheek before suddenly squeezing his cheeks and lips together with a light smoosh. 

"Am I telling the story?" 

Bruce nodded, then smacked the older vampire's hand away with a little hiss. 

"Go on then, you're just so dramatic."

"It's a dramatic story!"

"Because YOU made it dramatic!" 

"Ehhh... ya got me there." The clown said with a laugh, shrugging as he acquiesced. "Okay, as I was SAYING!" 

\- - - 

And it was always BANE, who managed to notice the other man first, though he never said anything. He would point or incline his head and it wasn't as if the Joker didn't know-- it was just him and the brute for now... 

The Joker was no fool and he certainly wasn't unobservant. He was just beginning to teeter on the edge of feeling miserable... There was something fun, truly fun, about disemboweling a person, especially if they didn't know it was coming but it got old after a while... But this! This was a little interesting and the fact that his usually stoic second in command was tensed and anxious around this debonair gangster only added to the plot thickening. 

A good way to distract from the ebbing monotony.

For weeks, he'd watch Bane staring off at the other man whenever they crossed paths and it seemed lately, they were crossing paths a lot. Harvey had only glanced in their dark direction a few times; aware of the odd audience but paid them no mind. It was nice to be the center of attention, especially when what he did, he did so well.

Ego was a problem that he was fine with having. The recent increase of agitation accompanying his heists was not. In fact, there had been a little bit of a pain in his gut, a feeling that was building up to near anxiety, like something was about to go down. 

Diligence and caution still couldn't spare the degenerate from his fate. Cross a guy one too many times and they start to figure you out. Figure your routine. Maybe even set ya up. 

\- - - 

Bruce looked at his lover, eyes narrowing as he sat up, mouth opening.

"--IT wasn't me. Trust me, I mean, I'm a proper son of a bitch, but Harv wasn't stealing from _me..."_

Fair enough. 

\- - - 

The usually smug man was anything but as he writhed bodily on the ground, his vocal cords shredding as he clutched at his destroyed face-- his hand, he was going to die on this filthy fucking street in this ghetto, all because of his greed and inability to cover his own goddamn ass!!! Harvey didn't even get the chance to see what fucking coward hat hit him with the chemical spray, all he knew was that he'd went down like a sack of bricks and wasn't gonna be getting back up. 

Of course, from the roof top that they'd been picking apart a body on, Bane had heard the cry, the agony that ripped through the night and he was over at the side of the building, staring down with bewildered eyes at the ground below. 

Him. His. Him. That man. 

Bane whipped his head back to the older vampire, one of the Joker's eyebrows raised as he noticed how tense his second was. 

"Aww, what is it, boy?" 

He tipped his head to the side at the second round of screams and grinned a nasty little grin. 

The behemoth looked back down at the street, leaning over the edge of the building. He had to go to him. He had to go that man, what was his name, Dent. 

"Jo-ker." Bane breathed out, ever one roll a syllable and he inclined his head towards the ground, his anxiety growing. The screams were overwhelming him, making the veins pop out in his neck and arms. 

"What" The master vampire drawled, flinging the arm he had been finishing draining somewhere behind his head and rose to his feet, full of grace. 

The bigger vampire looked back down to the ground and then back at his leisurely approaching master. 

_'Need him'_

Blurted into the Joker's head and he stifled the urge to bark out a laugh at how sincere the demand was. What the HELL was that about? But he kept his face smiling and calm as he sauntered over, leaning over the edge of the building and looking down at the writhing, screaming man. Oooh, look at that, pretty boy wasn't so pretty anymore! 

"He looks like shit." The clown muttered, shaking his head with a tsk. Shame too, he'd been a pretty handsome fella. 

Bane let out a strained noise at that, his hands gripping the molding of the building and beginning to crush it beneath his fingers. 

"I think he's gonna die." The Joker murmured next, tipping his head to the side and shrugged. 

"We need him." Bane rumbled out suddenly, glancing at his master. "Could be useful." 

Green eyes narrowed down at the man on the ground, lying in a pile of his own flesh and whatever corrosive fluid had been moltov'd onto him. 

_'Need him'_

Joker heard in his head again and peered slowly up at Bane, giving him the longest side eye he could muster. Oh yeah? 

"So what, turn him then?" The clown murmured casually, one hand on his hip as he shifted to face the biggest brute he'd ever seen in his unnatural life. 

Bane bristled instantly and the Joker, bless his horrible heart, was able to keep from laughing as he watched the giant's mouth fall open beneath his mask. 

'Me? _Yessss..._ ' The thought rumbled through the clown's head as Bane looked up, distracted at the thought and in that moment, Joker had dropped down to the ground in blink of an eye. Another scream-- this one different, this one... _familiar_... erupted raggedly from Harvey Dent's ruined mouth as the Joker bit into his wonderful, acid-washed flesh. This was new! This was different! It was gross, but it wasn't terrible. 

HE was terrible.

\- - - 

 

"You're a son of a bitch." Bruce breathed out, kicking the clown away from him gently. 

"We have established this, darling." The green haired man purred, allowing himself to be kicked and he rolled over with the help, lying on his stomach, legs kicked up in the air. He folded his hands under his chin and gazed at his petulant lover, what a horrible brat. "But I love youuuu..."

"Lucky me." The black haired halfling sulked and sat back on his arms, legs outstretched, parallel to his partner. 

\- - - 

Bane felt it, before he saw it, the breath leaving his chest, leaving him feeling burnt and hollow. He watched behind raged filled eyes as the other man stilled on the ground beneath the lanky bastard who had also stolen HIS mortality and he let out a growl that surely the Joker could hear, the concrete molding of the rooftop crumbling beneath his hands. 

He stormed away from the edge, struggling with wanting to leap down and throw the Joker from Dent, take the Payaso and tear him limb from limb. 

But he had saved the man. 

There was that and the behemoth managed to shudder in another breath, bending down as he palmed at his head-- and then his hands balled back into fists and he let out an internal roar that he couldn't allow himself to voice, shaking with his sudden hatred for his master. His blood felt like lava in his veins! All he could feel was agony and fury!!! 

"BANE!! BANE-O BOY!!!" The Joker sat back on his haunches, watching the gurgling man on the ground gasp and paw at himself as his flesh began knitting itself back together in great bands of glistening keloid scars.

His grin went wider at that scream... Oh Good, he'd been right; and the clown let out a whistle, calling his big, obedient number two.

Shuddering back his rage, the brute whirled around, his stomps so hard he was surely shaking this building and he leaped to the ground below, not even bothering to brace himself as he landed. 

The pain was inconsequential and he whirled to face the Joker, the sight of the prone man on the ground stunning him out of his rage. 

"Look at this ugly two-faced mug! Get him up and let's go back to the safe house, he needs to tidy up." The Joker said curtly, waving his hand in almost disgust at the gasping Harvey. 

Bane stared down, his heart pounding, the sound of his blood rushing through his ears distracting him from the gasps coming from the newly transitioned vampire. 

He bent down, hands clenching and unclenching and he stared still, feeling almost dizzy.

"OH GET ON WITH IT!" The Joker barked, shaking his head. He felt embarrassed for Bane! Swooning over another person like that... Acting like the other man was the center of his everything. It almost made the clown growl and he was suddenly quick as he took off towards their current safe house. 

It would have made the behemoth jump, had he been able to focus on anything more than the man on the ground. He was desperate to be careful, not sure even if he could be as he scooped the man from the ground, diligent to not jostle his exposed, scarred flesh. 

This was him, it really was him. It was 'Dent..?' he thought the name and was answered with a weak "Harvey,", which caused him to bristle and take off after his master. 

Bane hadn't realized he'd said the name aloud. 

\- - -

"But he didn't." Bruce had murmured, head tipped to the side, his eyes narrowing again. 

"No, detective, he did not." his partner murmured, letting out a sigh. Yeah, that might have been a little shitty of him. 

"It was super shitty, you are really spiteful, aren't you." The vigilante answered the Joker's thought, shaking his head again. 

"Guilty!" 

"Ugh." 

Bruce frowned, not wanting to find himself on the end of that. 

"Oh my darling... nooo..." The Joker was on him suddenly, lips at his jaw, petting his cheek. "I was only like that to them because I was jealous..." He admitted, his eyebrows curving innocently as he waited for Bruce to gaze at him. 

"You, jealous?" 

"Mmmh... It was.... extremely difficult for me to see them about to... do whatever, knowing that I hadn't found YOU yet..." 

Well damn. There was no arguing with that and Batman tipped his head, pressing a light kiss to the older man's mouth.

"You're still awful."

"Oh, I know."

\- - -


	2. I Wanted It &  I Wanted it Bad

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Harvey has yet to feed and Bane notices.
> 
> \-- Part of the Vampire AU conceived by @gayforbatjokes -- All of this can be found on the @husbandsofcircumstance tumblr

 

Harvey had been among the undead for only a few days and had yet to consume a drop of blood. He had no drive, no will-- the life he'd known was gone and now he was this... this.. abomination. The fact that he was no longer mortal was second to the knowledge that he was a hideous creature, a mess, nothing worth saving.  

He was introduced into this family, this clan of two, this green-haired, aloof madman and the quiet, masked giant. Harvey had recognized them from the city, from the bustle, noting the two unique figures but not lending them much of his time. 

Now, he was in one of their homes, sitting on the floor of an unfurnished room, as he had been for almost a week. Nothing felt normal anymore, even the fatigue he kept fading into didn't feel right.  

Woken by a shift in the dark room he was in, after a lazy blink and he found himself still slumped back against the wall, silvery blue moonlight filtering into the room. He tipped his head up, towards the door that had been quietly pushed open, eyes narrowing as he focused, or tried to, on the big shape filling the frame.  

It was that brute, the giant. 

The masked man had noticed, he had been rapt with attention, waiting to catch sight of the new member of their clan... But the days had gone by and finally, their Master had stormed off in compound frustration. This was Bane's opportunity knocking... He _knew_  the other was still among them but he need to feed and with Joker gone, there was no more opportune time than the present. 

Bane moved closer, staring down at the gaunt man and was grateful for the darkness, for his mask, as he felt his heart begin to pound in his chest, felt his jugular flex beneath his skin. He moved to his knees in front of the weak youngling, still towering over him and held out his right arm, gloved hand opened. 

' _Drink._ ' 

It was a command and though Harvey felt like he'd heard the man speak, he shifted and nudged the arm away, shaking his head no as he turned his damaged face away from the behemoth. 

Pulling back his arm, Bane reached back to pull his mask up, just enough to expose his mouth. 

"Har-vey." He exhaled the name for the first time since he'd heard the smaller man croak it out-- and naturally in his Bane-esque way it sounded as if he'd managed to put another syllable in there. The two-faced man's head snapped up and he looked up at the other man, gazed at what he could see of his lips in the darkness of the room. 

It made him swallow and he let out a sigh as he watched the man bring his forearm to his mouth and split the skin to easily. The smell of iron was almost a slap in the face and much to his own surprise, Harvey found himself salivating, having to swallow back the sudden wetness in his mouth. 

Smelled so... _good_. 

He wanted to be repulsed, to turn away from this situation, from this new life but the smell was overwhelming and the bigger man moved his weeping arm closer, clenching his fist to force more blood to the surface. 

It caused the newest member of the clan to let out a strangled noise, still debating about what he should do, what to do. Feast or Famine, Beggar or Beast. 

Bane wasn't going to be able to watch this woozy internal struggle for much longer, stifling the urge to let out a noise at the other. Harvey needed to feed, period. Flicking off his gloves as the blood continued to roll down the inside of his forearm, the brute wiped up a finger's worth on his left pointer finger and held it to the other man's mouth, right where his lips split. He watched Harvey swallow, watched his tongue from broken side of his mouth and the giant resisted licking his own bottom lip. 

He had to eat. He had to. That was it. Just let him feed and go. The urge to plead with the weaker vampire was strong but he didn't have to as the younger man swallowed thickly and opened his mouth to the drops of blood rolling down that big, blunt finger. Sure, under any other circumstances, he'd be taken aback-- at ALL of this, but the desire to be full and _feel_  was overwhelmingly sudden and strong. Harvey grasped at Bane's fist with both of his hands, licking off iron fluid and looked up, cheeks hollow and dazed. There was more? Yes. _Yes_ , there was. 

The giant had been holding his breath, watching with rapt attention from under his mask, mouth in a flat line. His jaw was clenched as he struggled to keep stoic, keep calm. 

"Nnh." The noise left his throat and he held his arm back up for the shuddering man, his un-sucked fingers tapping at the man's jaw to get his attention. 

Harvey gasped, his eyes dark, wasting not a second longer on putting his mouth on that open wound. He felt his teeth sink into the massive muscle of that forearm and a pained sound left his throat, a helpless sound of need as he pushed harder against the other man. 

Bane had to clench his now free hand, eyes squeezing shut under his mask as it was too much to bare, his chest was aching. He could feel his teeth crushing together as he struggled with the desire. 

He'd never felt this before. This rawness. It shamed rage, it shit on fury. The behemoth's hand was shaking by the time Harvey had lifted his head, lips flushed, what was good of his flesh cheek looked bright and alive, his eyes were almost glowing as he gazed up at the other and Bane... 

Poor Bane's head was rolled back, his chest heaving as he gave up his essence to this creature he was tasked with lamenting over. 

A wave of something rolled through him and the youngest of the clan felt suddenly awash with shame in response, scooting quickly away from the bigger man, swallowing his breath back in. 

Without thinking about it, or how intimate it was in retrospect, Bane licked at the still bleeding spot on his arm, then pulled his mask back down over his mouth and stood, still, as ever, speechless. 

He was quick to pick up his gloves and turn away from the smaller man, not daring to look back but did pause to toss an unopened pack of Dunhill cigarettes to the man. The red box. _He'd noticed_. 

Harvey caught the pack of smokes automatically, a dazed look on his face as he glanced down at the box in his hands-- _his brand_ \-- and then at the emptiness of the room. 

\- - - 

Bruce let out a breath, brows furrowing at, for lack of a better term, his husband and shook his head. His mouth opened to speak but he just let out another breath and ran his fingers through his hair. 

The older vampire grinned at that, head tipping to the side as he regarded his lover. Handsome, oh, so handsome...

\- - - 


	3. So Many Red Flags

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The Joker continues to tell the tale of Bane and Harvey to his lover-- much to Bruce's chagrin. No one likes to hear about forced feeding, do they?

 

Bane couldn't be bothered by how furious the Joker seemed to terminally be, his eyes narrowing in disgust beneath his mask as the master ranted.  

Joker knew no rage. He knew no fury like having your mate plucked from your fingers... It made the brute bristle as he started at the flailing vampire.

"So, let me just get this straight... YOU were his first feed?" The clown exhaled, his nostrils flaring as he pointed a long finger at the massive man. 

Said massive creature nodded once, wincing, then tensing a bit as the green-haired man screamed for Harvey to make an appearance. 

He was still new, still fresh. Dent was still unfamiliar with this new life, these new people but he found his feet almost moving on their own accord. Out of his room, down the winding sets of stairs and once he found himself in the room with the giant man, he sucked in a quick breath, averting his gaze. 

"You!" The clown gestured emphatically, his brow furrowing as he looked at the other man. "Two-Face! Whatever the hell your name is!" 

'Harvey' Bane thought while gritting his teeth under his mask and the Joker tipped his head to the side, towards his behemoth as he stared at the newest member of their clan.

"Harv..." The man exhaled, taking another deep breath before lifting his gaze to the Joker. 

The giant vampire had whipped his head to look at the soft-speaking man, his breath huffing out his mouth quietly and he then turned his attention to the payaso.

"Okay _Harv_ , did you feed yet?" 

The two-faced man's eyebrows rose and his gaze flicked to Bane for one long moment, the embarrassment, the shame of that coloring one of his cheeks again. 

"I'll take that as a _yes_." The master vampire muttered, hands on his hips as he looked between the two. 

Oh, the tension was palpable. He could climb on top of the tension and take a damn nap if he wanted to. It was exciting! 

"Well, regardless, I need to see it happen. So, let's go." The man said with a clap of his hands, a jagged grin splitting his face. 

"Wait... what?" Harvey's eyes narrowed and he managed to keep his expression from going bewildered. 

"Do I have a stutter, young man?" The Joker tittered, head thrown back with his laugh as he heard Bane growl in his head. "Go on.." Waving his hand, the oldest vampire meandered backward until he toppled back onto a chez-lounge, folding his arms back behind his head as he waited for the show to start. 

"Now?" the scarred man murmured, taking a shaky breath through his nose. No. No. Nononono... He couldn't do this. Not now. Not him. Not in front of anyone. No. No. "No." Harvey exhaled out much to the Joker's entertainment. 

'Bane.' The clown's had tipped to the side and the bigger man moved, his hands rising to his head, but the clown had 'tsk'd' at that, shaking his head. _Leave a little to the imagination, Baney! Jeez!_ The brute stared back at the Joker, loathing him, hating him, ill at the sight of him but even more anxious about having to bleed for his-- for Harvey again. 

He moved towards the shortest man of the clan, looming before Harvey Dent. Oh... This was torture. Every second of every day was torment... Bane ached for this creature. It was such an unusual feeling, to be pulled in any kind of direction. He wanted Harvey. He wanted to touch him, to taste him. 

"Calm boy!" The Joker snapped and Bane let out a growl, sitting on the floor with his legs folded beneath him. "Take off the vest." Was the next order and obediently, the giant of a man shouldered out of the cloth, draping the fabric across his lap. 

Harvey bristled, his eyes widening as he stared between the master vampire and his second in command. How was it possible that this big guy was just... doing whatever the hell this crazy bastard wanted? 

"Mmm... Mask on, for now." Came out as a tittered laugh and the clown lay back on the lounge, an arm draped over his head. "Go on now, give him your big, juicy jugular!" Another laugh, ohhh, this was gonna be good. 

A growled exhale left the big vampire and he tipped his head back and to the right, his arms outstretched behind him. His jugular throbbed visibly and the Joker stifled another giggle, lowering a knuckle to his mouth as he watched. 

\- - -

"You.. watched?" The halfling asked, feeling his shoulders prickle suddenly with cold sweat. 

"What do you mean ' you watched?' of _course_ I watched! I HAD to watch!" 

"Bullshit." Bruce hissed, glowering at his lover. 

\- - -

"Aw shit..." Harvey breathed out, staring down at the man in front of him... He could just... lean down and do it, the thought making him swallow as he stared at that thick neck. Bane really was huge... and his blood was so... Another shudder left the two-faced youngling, eyes shutting as he brushed his broken lips against that corded muscle, seeking that throbbing jugular. 

"Oh this is gonna be juicy..." The clown purred, suddenly rubbing his hands together as he sat up, an eyebrow arching as he noted how Harvey's veins were pressing up against his skin and scars as well. 

Hmm... So, this pretty much confirmed it. _Huh_. In all of his years, the Joker had not seen two vampires mate. He'd heard of the conventional and oddly romantic (gross) prospects of it but it was so _passé,_ not for him. Never gonna happen and if he had anything to do with it, wasn't going to happen for them either. 

Harvey had to squeeze his eyes shut, grasping those massive shoulders as he felt his fangs press against his upper lip and then pushed down into the behemoth's neck. 

The way he almost fell into Bane, the way his body shook as he started consuming the other man's blood made the Joker's mouth fall open a fraction. It was, and he hated to admit this, an intoxicating sight. Bane looked incredibly tense, his hands balled into fists on the floor as he, what looked like, resisted the urge to grab the man and pull him closer.

' _Oh, I know you want to, you want him in the worst way... tsk tsk tsk...'_ The master manipulator thought, shaking his head ruefully at Bane as he shifted in his seat, eyebrows lifting as Harvey lifted his mouth from the man beneath him. Pupils blown wide, the newest member of their clan let out a groan, his head rolling back for the moment he was able to spare on sucking in a ragged breath. 

Harvey was back on that thick throat, pressing himself eagerly into that massive body without realizing how he was practically climbing the other, hands grasping at whatever they could of the broad expanse of Bane's bareback. 

He tasted like a compliment to the flavors Harvey had sought in his life -- sharp like the first drag of a cigarette on a cold night. Bitter, almost like a rye on the rocks and then the strongest, most overpowering flavor. The rich, iron ore, Earthiness to it. Like turned soil and it made the newest member of their clan weak with need for it. 

Bane tasted like he was made for him. Maybe he was. The thought entered his mind and Harvey shuddered out a gasp against the bigger man's throat, feeling suddenly turned on and somehow, in this haze of bloodlust, not horrified. _Not yet_. 

The behemoth let out a strangled noise at this, one hand moving to clutch at the back of the scarred man, heavy against his back pressing him closer, harder--

"All right! Now switch!" The Joker chirped suddenly, clapping his hands together as he sat up and tapped his feet excitedly on the floor. 

Harvey lifted his head with a groan, eyes dark as he stared over at the green haired man and Bane froze, head also whipped to the direction of the payaso. He was panting beneath the other man, he could feel his need growing, blood coursing from the mark on his throat as he felt the loss of that mouth. 

No. Nonono. He would not put on a show for the fool...

"Do I have a stuttering problem? It's weird? I don't remember having any kind of speech impediment..." The Joker tipped his head to the side, eyes narrowing at the two and he lifted his hand and made a circle motion with his finger. 

"Switch. Harvey, take  off your goddamn shirt, this is gonna be messy." 

\- - - 

"This is fucked up." Bruce hissed, his eyes wide as he stared at the Joker. How was it that he felt such fury? Such hot rage? He felt almost to blame for the cruel behavior, shaking his head at the other. 

"Hey, I never said it wasn't! I'm just telling you a story." The older man said with a shrug and a smile. 

"You don't need to be so DETAILED!" The raven haired man roared, baring his fangs. 

"Oooooh, sure looks like I do!" 

\- - -

'Two-Face' glared over at the grinning vampire, his eyes narrowing with an 'are you serious' look as his fingers began to pull at his buttons without him realizing what he was doing. He tugged his dress shirt from his slacks and threw his shirt petulantly on the floor towards the chez lounge, frowning as he crossed his arms over his chest. 

"Aww... look at you. You might want to sit back, little guy. Bane's got a pretty big mouth..." The Joker murmured, waving his hand at them while the largest of the three automatically went to raise his mask, exposing his big lips. 

In his head, he was screaming. A steady mantra of 'no no no no no' this could not be... But his neck was aching, his breathing just barely back under control as he stared blearily at his master. Out of his peripheral, Bane could see his-- he could see Harvey removing clothing, shifting to sit back on the floor, as he had. 

Oh no. No no no no no... _no_. 

_'Yessssss.._ ' The Joker hissed into Bane's head, pressing his hands together and then against his lips as he waited.

"Go on..." 

Bane let out a growl that caused Harvey to bristle-- was that for him? And he cocked his head to the side automatically, breath already coming quickly. This guy could properly bite through his neck if he wanted to... 

His eyes, well, one of them, squeezed shut; the scarred man's lidless eye looking up, panting through his opened mouth as he waited and the anticipation was terrible. Harvey could feel the Joker starting at them, taunting them, eager for this show... and He. He couldn't help how ready he felt. The taste of Bane was too much... He tasted... _incredible_. He could suck on that man forever and the thought was as mortifying as it was elating. 

The giant vampire shuddered suddenly, blinking down at the neck exposed for him, almost quivering as he grasped at Harvey's bare shoulders. This was wrong. This was horrid and evil and vile and wrong and he couldn't help wishing that he'd removed his gloves so he could _feel_  the smaller man's skin. 

"Bane! I don't have all night!!" The Joker barked, snapping his fingers and another growl automatically left the behemoth, lips hesitating against the offered, unscarred side of Harvey's throat.

"Not there... Come on boys, stop pussyfooting around..." Harvey's eye snapped open, as wide as his left one and he sucked in a gasp, broken out of his attention being focused on that big mouth on his skin. 

Things felt like they were going in slow motion for Bane and Harvey as they slipped in sync, the smaller man shifting to lie back on the floor, his head tipped shamefully to the right. In his moment, he decided that he hated the Joker, hated that he had this kind of power and freely abused it. Hated how he was shaking with eagerness, with embarrassment, with want, with fear. 

Bane couldn't be bothered to glower at the clown, he knew that the Joker could feel his anger but it was still dwarfed by how difficult it was to keep himself in control. His head tipped, mouth against those keloid scars and the softest moan broke past his vocal cords, causing Harvey to tense, body arching right into Bane, pushing his neck into that massive maw. 

"Ohhh yes, would you look at that..." Joker began to slow clap for the men, sitting forward, elbows on his knees as he watched Bane's back flex and tense. As he stared at Harvey shoving himself up, grabbing at the behemoth's shoulders with clenching hands. At Bane's thighs tensing as he desperately tried to keep himself up, tried to keep from thrusting down. 

' _Oh, you know you want to... do it..._ ' Came the nasty hiss in his head and Bane broke his mouth away from Harvey's neck with a roar, head whipped towards the payaso and he bared his bloody fangs in rage at him. 

Harvey could NOT handle that, not at all, the sound that left Bane drew an unexpected climax from him, freshly sated body hypersensitive and helplessly grinding up against the massive brute above him. Moments after he'd realized with horror what he'd done, Two-Face froze beneath the bigger vampire, turning the scarred part of his face towards the floor. He couldn't move beneath the man, he couldn't do shit but try to breathe, try to make sense of what was happening. 

"Okay-- Okay, that's enough..." The Joker finally exhaled, waving his hand in disgust at them. "Go get yourselves cleaned up." Was his next order, Bane, naturally following obediently and he stood, with a groan, offering a hand to Harvey, who was still too dazed, too in shock to be bothered with acknowledging the offered palm. 

The elder vampire barked out a laugh, getting up from the chez lounge and stretched his arms above his head, letting out a pleased noise. 

"Oh, leave him, Baney, he's not going anywhere, is he." Came the laugh from the green haired monster and he fixed the two of them with a knowing glare. 

_Welcome to Hell, boys._


	4. Why Can I Not Conquer Love?

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Bane and Harvey have actively been avoiding being alone with one another for more than 150 days because they know, they just know, that the Joker will have a field day the moment they glance at one another.

\- - -

 

Bruce was pissed. He was pissed enough to get out of bed. Pissed enough to not even look at his lover as he walked into their adjoining bathroom.  

But he did leave the door open... 

\- - - 

It had been... months-- actually, it had been 156 days, before Bane had been completely alone with Harvey in any manner again. 

Yes, they had been regularly summoned to seek food and feed with the Joker. 

And Indeed, they had to fight off those competing for territory together.

And certainly,  they shared a living space-- a usually decent sized (and temporary) home that allowed them the ability to stay isolated from one another for the most part, but it was an active effort seemingly on both of their parts; never being alone in the same room-- let alone part of the house. 

They were desperately grateful for not being forced into feeding on one another and for whatever reason, the Joker had seemed to lose interest in watching them feed off one another.

No, he was more interested in other ways to torment the men. 

The few days after Harvey and Bane had to... perform for the Joker had been apocalyptically unpleasant. 

Bane had shown the most emotion that the clown had seen the brute produce in all of their time together, unable to keep from putting holes in the walls, stomping through stairs, going out to the roof and twisting the cornice of the roof beneath his gigantic palms. 

How could he have done that? Put a mark on that man without his consent? Bane had felt him tremble, felt him shake and he wanted so badly to smooth these same hands that were slowly demolishing this stone craftsmanship down the smaller man, assure him that... that he'd WANTED to, so much, to taste him, to feel him... but not like this. 

Now it was ruined. Befouled by mockery and dishonored by the payaso's games. 

But he still yearned... this was torment. How was he supposed to face that man again? After hardly resisting the commands to drink him. After feeling that scarred skin beneath his lips, feeling his pulse thundering. 

Another agonized roar left Bane and he tore up a meter's worth of stone cornice before hurling it blindly to the ground. 

Harvey would have been startled deeper into his darkness if he had been at the house-- but he'd fled. He'd left as soon as he was able to pick himself off of the floor, he'd left the house only looking back once to the silhouette of Bane on the roof before he disappeared for the next few days.

What the hell had happened?

What the hell was going on? 

He'd gone from being a pretty damn charismatic, coin-flipping troublemaker to this... thing. This, as the fucking Joker liked to call him, 'Two-Face' and the bastard was right. Now he was this... freak and with fangs to boot. Half-handsome and half-horrifying. A creature and he still needed to find the motherfuckers that did this to him in the first place.  

And how about _Bane_. 

Harvey couldn't even think of the massive man without his mouth starting to water and it filled him with equal parts fury and shame. There was no way that the man couldn't have felt how much he'd be.. ah... *moved* by being bitten by him, it was -- Fuck. FUCK! Even now, he couldn't think about it without getting worked up. 

The newest member of the Joker's clan had gone to his last place, his old home already ransacked by his cohorts, _big surprise_ , even his favorite guns were gone and it made him hiss-- a new thing but it was a satisfying gesture. 

Reconciling with afterlife was a new challenge-- he'd lived his mortal life not really having to face a problem if he didn't want to. Now he had a giant-sized one and didn't know any other thing to do but flee it. 

Bane didn't deserve him. 

From what he'd seen... and *felt* the massive man should never have even crossed paths with a piece of shit like the Joker-- but there was another layer, another chapter to the story he didn't yet know.

\- - - 

Bruce stood under the water of the shower, letting out another sigh as he listened. 

Another sigh left him in the form of a growl as he felt the space behind him filled with his lover. 

"It gets better for them, ya know. I was just..."

"Jealous, I know. You said." The raven haired halfling murmured, leaning back against his partner. 

"Didn't you realize how horrible you were being?"

"Not until I met you..." The Joker whispered against his lover's ear, dipping his head so he could reach some of the spray. 

They both knew that as a gross lie... but it sounded good. 

 - - - 

Reluctantly, he'd returned to the house, to his room. No one seemed to be around and for that he was grateful.  Harvey was surprised as he stood in the doorway of the room, to find the briefcase that he'd kept his guns in laying on the bed he'd yet failed to sleep in. 

Flipping open the case he let out a sudden laugh as he found his pair of silver handled Smith and Wesson .357's and felt a little sick with himself as he smiled. 

Dammit, _all._

Naturally, when summoned, he had to fight the urge (and always lost) to obey the green haired fool... but at least he could have a little solace in knowing that Bane had to be as obedient as he did... 

Still didn't make it easy to be around the gigantic vampire... and instead of trying to hold back, instead of struggling with the uncontrollable want and need to be at the big man's side-- it was better to put physical space between them. Walls. Furniture. Anything. 

He couldn't trust himself and it was bad enough he kept longing for the big man... He didn't need to be making a fool of himself directly in front the Joker as well. Not again. 

But... there were times that he found as part of this new 'family', that the salvaged guns and his experience with them came in handy for the benefit of the three of them.  

Bane could, as he'd seen, shred a person in half. Like a sheet of paper. 

The Joker had some kind of unnatural grace coupled with a strength that gave him goosebumps to behold.

And he, Two-Face, he could blow nose off of a man from several yards away with his .357... and it made him feel a little normal. Felt kind of good to start syncing back into something he was used to. The three of them worked fairly well together and for now, he could distract himself with that. 

The first time they had fought together, everything seemed to go in slow motion--  Even still, the Joker was a blur and Bane seemed like an impenetrable wall of strength-- it was stunning and made him feel... as alive, or close to what he was before this whole mess.

Fighting was good. It was something he was still familiar with, something he could hold onto. 

Tonight, however, was just another night where the vampires had been called independently to help their master neutralize an issue with a rival clan. 

Harvey was the last to arrive, eyes always first to Bane, who was swarmed with at least a dozen 'gnats' as the Joker referred to them as. New vampires with base instincts and no sense of propriety. They were kind of fun to dispatch.

And as he had for the last several times they'd had to come out and deal with these things, Bane turned his head to him for  brief moment-- and suddenly those gnats were thrown from him with a roar; the behemoth picking one up by their legs and swinging him until detached for his own limb. 

What a sight.

Harvey was quick with his guns, pulling them both from his underarm holsters, the sudden 'blam! blam! blam! blam!' making the Joker break out in loud, almost musical laughter. 

Ahhh, they were quite a team and even though he was the biggest pouting baby he'd met to date (it was still a few years before Bruce would be conceived) the two-faced brat was growing on him. 

That gruff, wanna-be loud-mouth attitude that was instantly shut down as soon as he was challenged-- it was watching a kid try to climb up a slide-- almost getting there with the sass and then suddenly losing traction and sliding back down. 

The thought made the eldest vampire laugh hysterically, sliding his nimble, gloved fingers gracefully wrapping around a gnat's neck and twisting his head all the way around. So effortless. 

 

 

 

Another growl from Bane, this one sounding slightly surprised and Harvey whirled to find three more of these foolish creatures on him, one utterly adamant about shredding his mask. 

And Harvey stood there, staring, only able to lift his left hand and fire his gun after the Joker started barking at him. He caught the gnat on Bane's left shoulder in the head, taking out a third of it's orbital and eye socket; the behemoth crushing the heads of the other two in his palms. 

Dent hardly had the chance to look, to stare, to see the wide scars that criss-crossed the behemoth's face. 

He as horrible to look at. It made Harvey's knees feel week. The giant was just like him. Holy Christ. Just... horrible. Too horrible to look away from but the brute had helped with that, turning his back to the two men as the silence of victory fell over their present battlefield.

"Harv, head back to the house and get another of Bane's masks." The Joker ordered with a wave of his hand, looking over at the stunned man and he smirked. This fool. This great idiot. "Come on, chop chop! We have to feed still!" The clown laughed and turned his attention to Bane as Harvey disappeared. 

"You okay, big boy?" 

"Fine, payaso." 

"Got a little distracted there, ey?" The Joker murmured, grinning as he began to inspect which of these bodies would be worth draining. 

"I was not the one who was distracted." The giant rumbled, glancing over at his master before following in suit. 

"Mmmmhmmm... " 

The Joker started humming, obnoxious bastard he was, flinging whole bodies into 'maybe' 'definitely' and 'no way' piles, all while feeling Bane's glare. 

They had moved to a new safe house about two months after Harvey'd been bitten, Bane had pretty much made the home unstable after a week of trying to shake the building from its foundation. In the new house, Dent hadn't even been to the man's room, he just knew the general area of it. 

He could find it, by the smell. 

That smell. That iron, that strong blood. It made his knees ALWAYS feel fucking weak and Two-Face took a shuddering breath before he pushed his way into the immaculate room. 

It was simple and tidy and there was a very worn looking, but clearly repaired teddy bear on the made bed and Harvey had to pause. 

What the hell. 

He was automatic, going straight to the bed and picking up the bear. His scarred fingers clutched at the fragile artifact and he touched the top if it's head, too many scenarios, too many reasons as to why this was kept-- entering his mind. Bane was an enigma. 

He held onto the stuffed animal as he moved quickly around the room, trying both to be expeditious while savoring these moments as he went to find more masks. 

Logic was strong and he went to the single dresser, top drawer and found almost a dozen of the hand-stitched masks. The urge to take one for himself was almost overwhelming but Harvey quickly grabbed the nearest and shut the drawer, whirling back around with the bear in hand. 

He looked at his hands, a bear in his scarred and Bane's mask in his other and let out a groan. 

When did this happen? HOW did this happen? 

The man set the bear down with a little pat, right where it had been and placed the luchador mask in his blazer, taking one last deep breath of Bane before leaving the room. 

When he'd returned to the scene of their fight, Harvey froze, his eyes widening before he glanced away from the sight of the Joker straddling Bane's chest, mouth on the other side of his neck. 

Harv couldn't see the biggest man's face, his head tipped away and he swallowed the nausea that hit him, the urge to yell or pull out his gun and fire it in the air and tossed the mask at the green-haired man, who caught with a smile against Bane's thick throat. 

Suddenly the Joker was up and at Harvey's side, licking Bane's blood from his teeth as he slung an arm around the shorter man's shoulders. 

"He's still good to go, y'know.." The green haired man teased, jerking a thumb back towards the biggest brute and Harvey let out a sort of growl, shrugging off the tall man's lanky arm. "Ehhh, suit yourself, I'm going back to the house, you two finish cleaning this up, mmkay?" 

 

And with a gingerly rough pat to Dent's shoulder, the Joker disappeared in a blur, leaving Harvey Dent with his back, tense, to the man he'd been trying to avoid for almost a half a year. 

"Thank you." Came softly from behind him and Harvey had to turn, he had to yield to that voice. It was the first time that Bane had spoken directly to him in months, the first time he'd allowed it. 

"S'nothin'..." Two-Face managed to croak out, clearing his throat as he looked up to that masked face again. Good. Good. It was easier to do this if he didn't have to stare at those entrancing scars, look at those big lips.

He turned from the other again, swallowing as he felt embarrassment creeping in-- it was still too soon. 

"We ah... we got this then?" Harvey murmured, waving his hand in the general direction of the piles of gnat bodies that Bane and Joker had organized. 

"Mmh, there is not much viable... I can discard them if you need to feed." Came the slow rumble, Bane not moving yet from where he had risen from the ground. 

"I'm fine... I'm fine..." Harvey lied, looking over at the bodies before looking back at Bane and he froze. 

How was he supposed to do this?

The bigger vampire had also paused, the two of them locked in a stare for a good moment. How many things were there to say? Both of them wanted to speak, wanted to apologize, wanted to clarify but the pressure of their master was incredible. The knowledge that if they even moved that fraction of an inch closer, he would send them tumbling back yards. They stared for a moment before Bane shifted and turned, throwing the discarded limbs and parts into the cobblestone sewers. 

 

Bane sighed-- his mask smelled like Harvey and for now, he could cherish the simple pleasure that came with the other man's scent-- and he was placid as Harvey began to help, silent as the two worked together. 

 

Maybe.. just maybe if they operated on this level, they could exist for the time being without so much discomfort. 


	5. But I May Snap

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The Joker regales his partner more of the saga of Bane and Harvey--- and how they came across Harley Quinn.

\- - - -

Bruce stood under the spray of the shower a moment longer before turning to face the Joker, the look on his face flat.

"When does this start getting better-- because right now it's unpleasant." He rumbled out, looking up at the ceiling, stretching out his neck.  
"Oh, come on, I'm about to introduce Harley-- and you know her, she always makes things that much more--"  
"Annoying?" The black haired halfling interrupted, not flinching as his lover's hands slid down over the curve of his hips.  
"HA! Yes, but okay. Let me keep going, my darling."

The vigilante let out a little noise and leaned into his partner again, not wanting to admit that despite his reservations, this was all very engaging.

\- - -

The interactions between Harvey and Bane were slowly, very slowly becoming more amicable. It seemed maybe once every few weeks, they were given a moment of peace.

Time to stand outside on the roof, opposite sides but-- hey, it was a start, Bane leaning back against the molding as he watched Harvey smoke. It was fascinating really, the way the acrid air lifted through the open sinew of his cheek, the cigarette hung from his lips.

This was not the first time they'd ended up together on the roof, no speaking, just observing. The first time, they'd had their backs to one another. The next, a quarter turn. Now, Bane openly watched the man he wanted, allowing himself this indulgence.

And in a way, Harvey knew. The body language, the way he had himself spread out like Bane was waiting for him to walk over, get up against his chest, lean against his thigh.

"Hn.." Dent let out a growled breath with his exhale, staring down the other man, not pulling the cigarette from his lips as he watched right back. If this was all he could have right now, he'd take it.

Flicking the cigarette off of the roof behind him, Harvey leaned back, matching the other vampire's stance... and he had to look away, look to the side, his stomach clenching as he felt the air shift and heard the Joker's shrill laugh.  
"There you are!!!"  
_'How romanticcc...'_ he hissed and both men snapped their heads up, staring at the older vampire.

There was always the tension, the sensation of the Joker somehow always present, but... there were times where the two could have a few moments without him being too interested in what they were up to.

Now, yet again, was not one of those times.

"Hey, Harv, c'mere..." The clown murmured, eyelids lowered as he strolled into the dead-center of the roof. "You too, Baney." He said with an incline of his head towards the big man.  
_'Sit'_ And Bane pushed away from the wall, a sigh loudly heaving from his chest as he moved closer, folding his legs beneath himself, gazing straight ahead.  
Time to feed again. Another sharp inhale through his nose and the brute began to pull up his mask, stilling as he felt the Joker sit down next to him, leaning against his thigh.

"You, here." The green-haired vampire purred, pointing to the space between his spread legs, the most charming grin he could muster plastered across his face as he looked up at Two-Face.

Oh FUCK. NO.

Harvey bristled visibly and somehow, SOMEHOW the clown managed not to bust out laughing-- he really was cute.  
_'No wonder you want him so bad._..' The Joker thought to his second in command and he felt Bane tense as he watched Harvey wipe at his mouth with his good hand.  
"Ah... look..."  
"Now."  
And Harvey sat automatically, feeling flush with agitation. This guy was... he was a real motherfucker. His breath was already coming quickly as he shifted against the taller man's body, Dent had still not yet been this physically close to Bane, not on purpose and it was increasingly difficult to keep his composure.

The clown leaned back a little more, pulling Harvey flush against him, curling an arm around his petulant form.

"This side or the other, what tastes better?" The Joker tittered, glancing up at Bane but didn't wait for a response, his mouth quick to latch onto the unscarred side of Harvey's throat.

It was surprisingly easy not to react to this-- it didn't feel the same as when Bane had bitten him. Harvey tensed his jaw, teeth clenched as he willed the thoughts away of that event-- those were secretly treasured memories, he wasn't about to taint them with this experience.  
Beside the pair, Bane was shaking, one hand clenched into a fist, the other holding it back. How easy would it be to put his fist _into_  the payaso's head? Squeeze his tiny brain until it popped like a whoopee cushion--

The Joker lifted his mouth from Harvey's neck with a laugh, gazing coolly at the other, a trail of saliva and blood trailing from the wound to his lips.  
"Want some?"  
Harvey tensed a fraction, knowing well enough by now that the head of their clan wasn't about to indulge that-- probably not for a long time, if ever again... And his frown widened as he sat back against the Joker, arms crossed.  
"You done?" Dent asked suddenly, not looking back at the green-haired vampire.  
"Oh no, not yet..." Was the almost sultry sounding response and the clown had wrenched Two-Face's head roughly over, holding it against his chest, forcing his face towards Bane as he went in on that scarred flesh. The texture was pretty interesting, notable at very least-- Hell, it was different enough to start breaking up this monotony of feeding and killing and so on.  
A look of distress painted Dent's face, trying to arch away from the Joker's mouth while desperate not to look at Bane, who had whipped his head down and was staring right back.  
_'I want this to be you...'_ Harvey thought, frustrated and embarrassed and furious and mortified as he was essentially taken, yet again, in front of the giant vampire.  
And as if Bane could sense the thought, he tensed, his body bulking up as he let go of his left wrist and straightened, the sounds of his knuckles cracking as he flexed his hands open and back into fists distracting the payaso.

The Joker pulled back with a laugh, acting as if he was oblivious to how silently enraged the brute was getting and licked his lips, hands to Harvey's shoulders as he bodily moved the shorter man towards Bane.

"You sure you don't want any of this, you should _feel_ how hard his heart is pounding!"

Both men were up suddenly, breaking away from their master, from the proximity as fast as they could and the Joker lay back on the roof with a cackle, stretching out his limbs.

"AHHH!! We have a good time, don't we boys!"

Harvey was back on his side of the roof, facing away from the other two, another cigarette already between his lips.  
Bane on his side, the poor cornice of the roof being crumbled beneath his hands once again.

\- - -  
"Why... are you telling me this?"  
"I just wanted to let you know that I'm an equal-opportunity Master? You know, spread the sickness all the way around."

Bruce growled at this, whirling to face the taller man, his fangs bared.

"NEVER. AGAIN. RIGHT?"  
"Oh, sweetie. Are you kidding me? If I could only feed on you for the rest of my afterlife, I would..." The Joker stroked long, pale fingers over his lover's tensed jaw and stole a kiss from his bottom lip.

The halfling deflated at that, arms wrapping around his mate and he pushed his face against his throat.  
"I don't like hearing this stuff, it makes me very..."  
"Possessive...?" The clown asked with a tilt to his voice, a cunningly coy look on his face.  
"...you're a bastard." Bruce hissed, suddenly biting him and the Joker began to laugh.

\- - -

It went on like this for years-- in fact, it was easier to keep track of the time with what safe house they were in and where. Ultimately, this routine would continue... The three of them would hunt, they would fight.  
Harvey would slowly be able to turn towards Bane. Bane would be able to lean back against the cornice and watch... And the Joker would show up and knock the house of cards back down with one little blow.

Harvey would then turn away and Bane would, as was now habit, begin to destroy the safe house, unable to internalize his rage.

It was starting to get a little irritating to the clown, especially if he happened to *like* their current home. But he was bringing it upon himself, though... Even THAT was starting to become a bore. How many decades could he watch these two fools get so close and then fall apart?

Probably a few more, honestly.

 

It was the late sixties, apparently. Time was of no consequence to these three but there were new, flashy things around. People were getting openly fucked up in the streets-- there was suddenly a lot more bustle than there had been in even the last 30 years... This made it easy pickins for everyone.

Even little blonde idiot, smart-ass pick-pockets.

It had happened in a blur, cheeky woman bumping into him, a coy smile on his face. He and the boys were in hot pursuit of some rat-assed piece of shit who'd stepped on his shoe and didn't apologize. That kid was dead meat, but serendipity reared it's wild head and threw one miss Harleen Quinzel in their path.

Serendipity, however, wasn't truly with them. She'd noticed these three for the last few weeks, new to her 'hood. It wasn't like a green haired pale guy, flanked by a giant and a distractingly scarred guy were easy to lose in a crowd... so when the blonde spotted them tonight, she knew she'd have to make her move.

There was no WAY the tall guy wasn't loaded. Every time she'd seen him, he was in some kind of suit, always looking admirably perfect. She could look perfect too... If she had that kinda scratch.

"Oops!"  
"Whoa..." The clown murmured, as the young lady bumped into his chest. "Better watch where you're going there..." He'd killed people for less.  
"I'm a real clutz, Mistah!" The girl giggled, the wallet that she'd plucked from his blazer behind her back and like that, she'd sidestepped him and was on her way. Holy CRAP!!! This was a thick wallet!!! Stuffing the billfold in her top, she let her hands drop casually to her sides as she strolled away, trying to hold in her excitement.  
**JACKPOT!**  
The Joker whirled, knowing instantly that he was missing one of his vital effects and balled his fists at his sides, eyes widening.  
That little shit!  
He was after the blonde, leaving Bane and Harvey watching him backtrack suddenly, stomping after the girl.

"He's trailing her..." Harvey murmured, not yet following the Joker and his gaze slid to Bane who heaved out a groan. This green haired fool.  
"We're supposed to be tracking the man..."  
Two-Face took a step back, keeping his eye on their master.  
"At least they're going down the alley, away from the crowd..."

Bane let out a sigh, tipping his head at the shorter man and they turned to follow the Joker, ready and bracing themselves to clean up his mess.

"Heeeeey there, girl buddy!" The clown murmured, suddenly in front of the blonde, his arm outstretched, blocking her immediate route. "I think you accidentally caught something of mine.."  
Harley folded her arms behind her back, a coy look on her face as she pushed out her tits.  
"Gee, I dunno what you're talkin' about, Mistah..." She breathed, batting her lashes.

The brute tipped his head down the alley, eyes narrowing beneath his mask.  
"Yeah. She is dead, Watch for bystanders." He murmured to Harvey, who nodded after shaking his head. Well, the girl had earned it.

"Give it back." The Joker murmured, staring down at the girl.  
"Give what ba--URK!!" She was lifted by her throat suddenly, hoisted off the ground so that she was eye-level with the man in purple.  
"This little *THING* doesn't work on :*me*, sweetheart." He growled out, baring his fangs at the blonde.

Her eyes went wide, hands reaching up to clutch at that pale wrist and with the breath trapped in her lungs she started to laugh.

"BAHAHAAHAHAHAAHAHAA!!!!!"

And she didn't stop.

In fact, she was laughing so hysterically, eyes starting to tear up, that it caused the clown to start to chuckle, bewildered at this nutcase. This true fool. He liked her. Bane whipped his head to the scene, brow furrowing beneath his luchador mask and tipped his head to the side.

"Is he going to feed on her?"  
"No... he only feeds on women if necessary."  
"Why?"

There were probably hundreds of reasons. Maybe the blood was too fatty. Maybe too sweet.

"He only drinks from those he is attracted to in some way. Large men."

The silence between them stretched and Harvey felt himself tense, getting suddenly quite uneasy and Bane could feel it.

"Not me..." He murmured, voice low. "Never like that." The way that Harvey instantly relaxed made the brute smile, though Harvey couldn't see it. Mmh...

Both of the other vampire's turned to suddenly stare down the alley, where the two of them were trying out laugh one another (or so it seemed), the hysteria rising to fever pitch.

"Why aren't you scared?" The clown asked suddenly, smile gone from his face.  
"Doesn't matter, does it?"  
"You are going to **_DIE!_** "  
"Welp! Can't wait to see what happens!" Harleen said with such cheer that it made the Joker's face split in an unusual grin.  
"You like new experiences, don'tcha girlbuddy..."  
"Uh-huh..." The girl exhaled, grinning as she dangled in the grip.

"The payaso seems... interested." ' _Distracted_.' Was what Bane thought, his gaze slipping to Harvey. If this girl, this mad little woman was to become part of this clan... His hands clenched and the behemoth shook the shudder from his body, though he couldn't tear himself away.

"Alright!!!" The Joker barked and the other two vampires whipped around to face him as he lifted the blonde into the air and over his shoulder. "C'mon, let's go to the hideout!"

Bane stared, knowing that despite his luchador mask, the perplexed look on his face must have been visible. At least to Harvey.

"Are you gonna turn me into a vampire?" Harleen asked with an eager squeak, at little too comfortable with her fate.  
"Oh, why yes I am! How'd you guess?"

"What about the man." The brute rumbled, blinking as their master started to saunter away with a woman on his shoulder. No one else seemed to notice.  
"What man?" The Joker asked, ignorant to his trivial quest from earlier.  
"Seriously." Bane growled, watching as the green-haired master vampire led the way back home.  
"Hiii! I'm Harleen! You can all me Harley!!" She waved at the two stunned men, grinning from over the Joker's shoulder.

"...Hola." Was all the giant vampire could offer, Harvey couldn't even respond, wondering what the hell this was going to snowball into... and looked up at Bane, who looked back down at him.

' _Here's to the distraction..._ ' Two-Face thought as he pulled out a cigarette and lit it.

 

 

When they'd returned to the house, several moments behind the Joker-- the sight they were welcomed to was Harley, spread out of the floor of the main room, their master sitting next to her shuddering body, wiping this mouth with the back of his hand, then on the floor.  
_Yuck._  
"Are we...Hnh.." Harley sat up, stretching, the darkness suddenly beneath her eyes looked like it had always belonged there. "We gonna bang now?" She asked coyly, licking one of her fangs.

The cigarette fell out of Harvey's mouth, Bane had actually snorted and the Joker looked at the woman like she was **ACTUALLY** insane before he fell backward with the force of his laughter.

Her nose wrinkled as she looked at the flopping with laughter man, then to the big guy, then the scarred guy and shrugged.

"That's not something we do?"

The Joker sat up, shook his head between laughing and gestured to Harvey and Bane, both still staring right back.

"Gentlemen?"  
"No. Nononoononoonoonoo. Not me." Two-Face breathed out, putting his cigarette back in his mouth before he held up his hands defensively.  
"No." Was all Bane rumbled, shaking his head to emphasize this and Harley shrugged again.

"Ah well! I tried!"

\- - -

The Joker stepped out of the shower first, reaching and offering a towel to his partner before wrapping himself in the other.

"So just like that? What is with you?"  
"Ehh, I'm spontaneous?"  
"Only when it's incredibly ridiculous to do so?"  
"Exactly! See, you know me so well, my darling..."

Bruce shook his head, drying his hair before wrapping the towel around his hips.

\- - -


	6. I've Got Thick Skin

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Another decade goes by and the clan starts to learn more about what their master is all about--- as told by the Joker to his partner.

\- - -

Harvey stood on the roof, leaning back against the cornice, cigarette hanging from his lips as he fingered the coin in his pocket. His eyes flicked to Bane, who was emulating his position, leaning back on the roof, watching him.

Things were.... palatable right now.

Harley had been with them for almost a year, the Joker was happily distracted by his new hench-wench and neither Bane or Harvey had done much to show up on their master's radar.

A small smile crossed Dent's lips and he inhaled a deep drag of his Dunhill, exhaling the smoke through his nostrils as he pulled out the coin and set it on his thumb, flipping it into the air.

It caught the moonlight, slicing through the air and landed heavily in his palm with a little 'slap'.

Heads. Kept going heads.

He looked back at Bane and flipped the coin again, watch the other man instead of his talisman, still catching it.

Things had been a lot better, actually.

Well, if 'a lot' meant that they hadn't been forced to feed off of one another... Or that they times that their master had needed to feed on either of them, it was necessity rather than torment.

Harley was also a doll. She was noisy, sure, but she was terrific at scouting, was able to locate safe-houses almost on a whim and despite being a thieving little shit in the beginning, was PERFECT for managing the finances. (Better than what the Joker was doing, which was just throwing whatever valuables they'd acquired into a safe that he'd had Bane lug along to each new home. )

Another flip. Two-Face watched the coin twist in the air this time and took a step back as it was caught by one very large hand.

"Har-vey." The bigger man murmured one arm on the cornice beside the scarred man, the other rolling the coin between his fingers.  
"Mmh.. Hey..." He exhaled around the cigarette, gaze guiltily flicking up that body.

They hadn't been this close since they'd had to feed on one another and that had been decades now.

"Why do you do this?" Bane breathed out, holding up the coin between this thumb and pointer finger. It looked so small. It looked like a penny instead of a half-dollar.

The scarred man was distracted, eyes fixed on his coin, on that hand. The urge to snatch it back was strong... Where Bane had his bear; he had his defaced coin. It had been his *thing*, flipping the coin to decide fate... and when fate had been decided for him that night so, so many years ago, it had been in his left pocket, fried by the acid just as he had been.

"Mmh?" He looked back up at Bane's face, at where he knew that mouth was.  
Shit, this was too soon still. He couldn't focus... All that he could do was feel his own mouth starting to water, again. Like a starved man.

But he was, wasn't he.

"Har-vey." The brute exhaled again, rolling the coin across his fingers the way he'd seen his cielito do before he boldly reached forward and slid it into the smaller man's left pant pocket, fingers grazing his thigh for a moment too long.

Dent's eyes went wide the instant he'd felt the pressure of the coin  and he swallowed his breath, the cigarette falling from his mouth as Bane took a step away from him.

"Hey guys!!!" The moment was shredded by the sound of Harley Quinn's voice and she popped out onto the roof, eyelids lowering for a second as an 'awwwww' crossed her mind and the two vampires jumped apart.

Damn, they were so cute.

Both of them whirled to face her, Harvey looked something between indignant and relieved and Bane just stood there, heaving a little. That was.... kinda normal. Right?

"Sooooo, Mister J said something about this big party? You guys know anything about it?"

The blank looks (well, she assumed Bane's was blank...) she earned in return were response enough and she shrugged.

"Apparently it's of the 'utmost fanciest-shmaniciest' and we get to go get some nice duds-- Boss is gonna show us off orrr... somethin' like that. I dunno, he made it sound super fun..." With a flourish, she turned, twisting a finger through her hair and glanced back at them. "So, Italy tomorrow? Good? Good! Great! HA!!!" And with that same kind of callous aloofness that the Joker exuded, she left them to their own devices, setting about getting what they needed to go overseas in the next 18 hours.

\- - -

  
"Wait, what is this?"  
"Oh, you'll find out--- every ten years there is like this, massive and I mean MASSIVE gathering of all of the vampiric clans."

Bruce's eyebrows rose.

"Yeahhhh it's kind of a big deal. I don't really need to go, or I do, ya know... Look. For whatever reasons I had, I didn't really like going to this show-off fest."

The blue-eyed halfling balked at that and couldn't resist the laugh that left him.  
"You.." Bruce couldn't continue, wandering back into their room and sitting heavily back on the bed while he laughed. No. There was no way that the **JOKER** , _his_ Joker would SIT OUT on being the center of attention.

"Yes I know, hilaaaaaarious." The green haired vampire deadpanned, but couldn't help staring ravenously at his lover. His Batman's ultra-rare laugh was his absolute undoing.

The younger man was pushed onto his back and straddled by his lanky lover and he allowed himself a smile at his partner. Such a fool. They both were.

"But look, you know that phone call that you rudely interrupted with your naked and hard body, wanting me to fuck your brains out?" The clown leaned forward, leering. "And I _did_?"

Bruce flushed at this, cheeks going red and the vein in his throat throbbed visibly.

"Yeah..?"  
"So, I was on the phone with one of the guys who is in charge of selecting the venue." The Joker murmured, waving his hand casually as he lay against his mate.  
"Uhh...huh..."  
"For this big party-- that is in the beginning of September, by the way. So we are going to have to go and take care of some things..." He tapped his chin with his pointer finger and sat up, debating on finding another functioning cell phone and calling up his guy.  
"Just... keep telling me the story..." Bruce breathed out, hands moving to those pale, narrow hips and he pushed the older vampire back against his groin.  
"Ohhh... yeah?" Green eyebrows rose as his eyelids lowered and he smirked. "Wellllllllll, if you insist..."  
\- - -

Things were so much easier in the 70's... You could get on an airplane with a gun and a cigarette in your mouth, or if you were Two-Face two guns without any sort of hassle.

The ride had been quiet and quick, all things considered, Harvey pleased to be windmilling smokes. Flying was convenient... but he hated it. Not enough control. Too many variables. He glanced to Bane, who had his head tipped against the little rectangle window, peering off.

In reality, he'd been watch Harvey, watching him chain-smoke, watching him roll his coin over his fingers. He'd become kind of an expert at watching the man who would one day, even if he had to kill the Joker himself, become his mate.

Harley and the payaso were sitting, knee to knee, not stop talking, entertaining each other and for the petite woman, he was grateful. She served more than one purpose and anything that kept the Joker from needling him with attention was a benefit.

Bane shifted in his seat, turned bodily towards Harvey and made no attempt to disguise that he was looking.

 _'What is it that you need to decide, Mi Cielito?_ ' The behemoth wondered, blinking under his mask as Harvey looked up at him.

Their moment was interrupted, as usual by Harleen's shrill laugh, smacking the Joker away from her.

"STOP." The blonde squealed, pushing the clown again.

Bane shifted back into his original position, head against the window and continued his task of memorizing Two-Face and Harvey kept staring at him, flipping the coin.

Fucking heads. Again.

\- - -

It was a blur until they found themselves ushered into an old stone building, climbing up a staircase with too-narrow stairs-- First Joker, then Harley, then Harvey and Bane.

Everything looked plain, almost archaic until they got to the landing, dark shiny walnut doors with tarnished brass handles stood before them; the Joker not hesitating as he shoved them open.

"SALVATORE!!!" He screeched, embracing the stout, apparent vampire. The other three stood, paused in the doorway until they were ushered inside by tall, quite assistants.

\- - -

"Okay, so, I've known this fat old piece of shit since the _dawn of time_."  
"Uh-huh..." Bruce nodded, trying to stay interested in the fat man while his partner was perched on him.  
"-- and he honestly, probably has the most of any of the money I've ever had-- he's been my tailor since like, 1887...ish."  
"Right..."  
"Really great guy, I mean, salt of the Earth. Spends a little too long on the inseam, but eh..."

The halfling's hands slid along his lover's waist, up his lower back and then back down to his ass.  
"I already don't like him."

\- - -

Harvey stood at the doorway of the porch that hung from this top-floor room, eyes narrowed as he looked out into the night.

Apparently, this 'party' that the Joker had been talking about was some... incredibly complex, massive shit show and this time, after avoiding it for a while... he wanted to show off his growing clan.

So here they were, getting measured for custom suits.

  
He... **lik** **ed**  a good suit. Harvey Dent... liked to look good, _naturally,_ he was torn. Not wanting to be a piece of eye candy but... knowing he was one. Or at least half of him was.

He took a long drag of his cigarette, glancing back in the room to Harley, stripped down to her underthings, arms held out and a giggle in her throat as she was measured.

A glance at Bane, who was standing with his arms folded and Two-Face let out a few smoke rings, his eyes narrowing again as the behemoth was beckoned. He tried to keep his face steady, tried to keep breathing through his mouth and out of his nose but as the biggest man began to disrobe-- and suddenly it became quite apparent that he wore no undergarments. Harvey was barely able to stifle a noise, his mouth falling open as he saw the full profile of the giant vampire and the cigarette finally fell. The man scrambled to pick it up, turning to fully face the porch, his face hot.

_Why._

_Why_ _why why. Damn. Shit._ Fuck though. That was... something. Dammit. **NO**.

Finishing the rest of the cigarette and flicking it off of the porch, Harvey stared off at the horizon, breathing through his nose as he tried to regulate himself and he had to shut his eyes.

_'Big boy, ain't he.'_

Harvey's head whipped around and he glared over at the clown who, having already been measured for his suit, was lounged in a large chair, Harleen sitting on the arm, looking at her nails. The scarred man's gaze flicked back to Bane, the man's arms outstretched as he was measured and he guiltily looked back down before letting out a strangled groan and dug in his pocket for another smoke.

_'Huge, even.'_

Lighting the cigarette, Two-Face felt for the coin in his left pocket, letting the cigarette hang from his mouth again-- the air taste better here filtered through smoke, that was for damn sure and anything he could do to keep from reacting to the Joker would be to his benefit.

"Va, bene..." The old Italian vampire spoke suddenly, looking up from Bane and gesturing for Two-Face, who pulled the cigarette from his mouth and gave the shortest grown man he'd seen in his life a perplexed look.

"He means **you** , dope." The Joker hissed, shaking his head and he waved a hand at the poutiest member of his clan. "Go on, get naked, hot stuff." And of course, he laughed like a hyena, Harley sitting up a little bit and glancing from her nails to the scarred man. She could get down on a solid stare...

Opening his mouth to make a hissing noise, Harvey took one last drag of his cigarette before throwing that one too and he ignored both the Joker and Harley as he moved to the center of the room, shouldering out of his blazer and unbuttoning his shirt. He wasn't focused on anything but getting down to his undershirt and boxers-- and let out an annoyed sound as he slung his clothing over his scarred arm, only to have Bane (once his goddamn pants were back on) pluck the garments from him and step back to the wall.

Harvey's face went a tiny bit colored at that and the aloofness he'd been exuding turned instantly to self-consciousness, body tensing a bit as he realized he was pretty damn near bare in front of a stranger and three creatures he was reluctantly calling family.

"Qui, qui!" The chubby little tailor rumbled, gesturing emphatically with both hands as he guided the scarred vampire, by his HIP, then pulled at his hand to stretch out his arm. The two seated vampires whipped their heads to the biggest of their clan, Bane letting out a grunt as he watched the stout vampire touch his... friend and clenched his jaw, pointedly ignoring the way that Harley and the payaso were staring at him.

 _'Saw yer chub.'_ The Joker's eyes narrowed as he peered at the brute, Harley letting out a little giggle.

Yeah, they did! It was... Scary... but cute? In a way? She nudged her shoulder into the clown, grinning sweetly at the masked man.

 _'Didn't realize you liked being looked at so much...'_ The master vampire murmured into his head and **THAT** made Bane tense, his head slowly turning to the green haired fool and his hench-wench. The clown smirked at that, arm draping behind the back of the couch he and Harleen were on as his gaze slid back to Harvey. _'He doesn't...'_

The large vampire swallowed, head turning back to Two-Face, who had his good eye squeezed shut, his unlidded orb staring blankly straight ahead as the measuring tape was drawn across his thick body.

Bane could see his jaw clenching, the muscles in his mouth flexing on his left side... It made him want to pick up the little man and hurl him off of the balcony-- it would be easy too. A huffed breath left the giant's nose and he clenched the fabric that was in his hands, careful not to crush the pack of cigarettes Harvey would surely be needing as soon as he was relinquished.

 _'Now now...'_ The Joker let out a sudden laugh and Two-Face lifted his head, assuming it was about him, then took a step away from the tailor.

"I think you got what you need." He rumbled, whipping around to seek the biggest man in the room and fixed Bane with a _'Man I hate this'_ look before holding out his unscarred hand.

A cigarette was placed in it and Harvey shrugged for a moment before putting it in his mouth, automatically going to reach for a lighter but... no pants. Suddenly back to feeling embarrassed for no good reason, Dent's brow furrowed before he was distracted by the familiar sound of his lighter being flipped open and Bane was there, holding his normal-sized Zippo between those massive fingers and it looked like a goddamn toy. But... he leaned forward, eyes on the flame as he lit his cigarette, took a deep breath and felt his clothing being stuffed into his hands; the brute suddenly turning away and heading out to stand near the open porch.

 _'Oh, my Gawd... How can you even stand this?'_  
_'I can't my dear... I really can't...'_

\- - -

By now, Bruce was lying back, arms folded behind his head as he listened... This story was still kinda sad.  
"So... Harley is just kind of enabling you to be an asshole to an audience?"

The clown tipped his head to the side from where it was set on his folded arms on his lover's chest.

"You know... that's a great way to put it! You're so smart... AND handsome!"

\- - -

They returned to casual silence as the Joker made his grand exit from this fabulous tailor he wouldn't shut up about... They would see in a few weeks what kind of work the runt of a vampire could produce but for now, as the dawn approached the clan of four found themselves ushered yet again into another deceptive looking building.

"Well _holy shit_." Harley exhaled, breaking whatever peace that had accompanied them to the flat they would be occupying for the next few hours.

"Mmm.." The clown was distracted, scanning the room-- three suites and the main room. This would work. "Harley, first door on the left is you! Harvey, you get to share a room with..." His eyes narrowed, glancing at the hulking vampire. "Bane. Naturally, I get the last room, as it is the biggest." The Joker was all grins as he strolled into the main living space, twirling as a malicious thought began to fester in his mind.

"But for now... _C'mere_..."

Two-Face had paused, not moving from where he'd shuddered. He could feel the panic setting in, the could feel the pressure almost pushing on his shoulders and his hand slid into his left pocket to clutch his coin.

Great. What fresh hell was this? Even the thought of sharing a room with Bane wasn't as dreadful as what had just set in.

"Harvey, why don't you take a seat, take off your shirt? Maybe show us some of that fucky looking neck... I want Bane to show Harley how to feed properly off of you..." He leaned closer to the tense man, voice husky against his scarred ear but deliberately loud enough so everyone could hear. "She seems interested."

His good eye squeezed shut and Two-Face growled out a breath as he tugged at his tie, unlidded eye staring off at nothing as he obeyed and did his damnedest to keep his goddamn head clear...

 _'You're a son of a bitch...'_ He couldn't help the thought, eyelid fluttering as he began to unbutton his shirt.  
_'You don't know the half of it, honey.'_ the Joker answered back and pat his good cheek a little too roughly before he whirled to face Harley.  
"Well, come on, this is for you, kiddo! Get a good seat for the show!"

Harvey glanced to Bane who... was actually glancing (likely) in his direction, easily as tense but for whatever reason this time, looking at the massive man made him feel a tiny bit relaxed, almost calm. He felt... almost excited to feel Bane on him again... But of course, that was met with the horror and embarrassment of having to try not to turn into a fucking teenager beneath the... Looking away from Bane as he felt the other man's stare grow stronger, the shorter man rolled his head from side to side, cracking his neck and draped his now discarded blazer, shirt and tie over the back of a lounge that Harley had decided to perch herself on.

"Fine, where, here?" Two-Face managed to rumble out, gesturing with his good hand at the oriental rug on the floor.

"Oh, it's your choice, wherever is the most comfortable, Harv! You know me, looking out for my guys!!" The Joker could barely squeak that out without laughing, flopping down gracelessly next to Harley. "This is gonna be good." He murmured out of the side of his mouth to the shorter woman, who was already nodding.

Two-Face scoffed out a noise at that, then took a deep breath as he sat back on the carpet, running a hand through his hair as he waited for Bane to approach. He could still feel the tension in the air, he could feel how much the biggest vampire was restraining himself and it was a horrible kind of exhilarating. Indecisive at heart, Harvey was torn between wanting this to just be over with... and wanting Bane to drag it out, take his time.

_'Give them a show.'_

As if he could hear it... and maybe he could, the behemoth was standing before the seated man, staring down at him. He could feel his heart working overtime, wondering just when the master vampire would start dictating but for now, he relished the sight of Harvey Dent, waiting for him, his Harvey.

_'Mine.'_

The shorter man reflexively swallowed at that and allowed the tiniest smirk to cross the corner of his mouth as Bane reached up to roll up his mask.

"No, let him do it." The Joker murmured suddenly, slinging an arm around Harley. "Man, popcorn would be perfect right now?" He asked the woman and tsked, shaking his head as he peered back down at the smirk falling from Harvey's face.

The giant let out a growl, inhaling sharply as he got to his knees and then hunched over the man he wanted so badly to be his mate, hands braced on the floor above the half-scarred man's shoulders and he waited. There were only inches between their bodies, by virtue of how massive Bane was, the struggle to keep from pressing the rest of the way down, was real. But he persisted, unable to shut his mouth or his eyes as Harvey tentatively reached up and slid his fingers along his neck.  
It made him tense harder, nearly trembling.  
Why... was this taking so long? Why didn't he care? He flexed his throat and those dual-textured fingers rolled his beloved safety-net up his jaw, lingering on his skin.

 _'Oh shit.'_ The Joker thought suddenly, his brow furrowing as Harley clutched at his arm. They hadn't even drawn BLOOD yet.

"F...Fuck." Harvey whispered thickly, hoping he was quiet enough for their master not to hear as he quickly curled his hands away from Bane's face and dropped them to his sides, balled into anxious fists. _'Fuckfuckfuck'_  
_'Oh.. but if we could, mi Vida...'_ The behemoth thought as he shuddered, arms no longer able to bear his weight as his mouth pressed to Two-Face's corded throat, a kiss, he'd left a kiss because he could... and he felt Harvey's hands fly to his shoulders, his hips buck up in response.  
_'Yessssss...'_ And his teeth pressed into the other man's throat. _'You will be mine, cielto... I will have you'_ His thoughts were relentless, shameless, greedy, almost selfish as he flexed over the smaller man, eager to feel how much he needed this too.

Two-Face let out a noise from his throat, that passed through his cheeks and his lips and it made Harley make a noise in response, almost feeling guilty that they were watching this.  
**_Almost._**  
But she gripped the Joker's bicep harder to the point where he shoved her back with a grimace and dusted off his suit. Really? Get ahold of yourself, child! It's not like--

His head slowly turned back to the men in front of them, brows climbing up his forehead as he watched Harv undulating against the floor and his second in command, hands sliding over his shoulders, his masked skull. _Okayyyyy_.... Maybe he shouldn't have them do this again, it really wasn't worth it, even if it was supposed to entertain him and Harley.

At this point she'd slapped her hands over her mouth, eyes wide as Bane lifted his mouth from Harvey's scarred neck and arched his whole body down and forward, very clearly grinding himself back into the smaller man, pinning him to the floor.

"Daaaaaaaamn..." Harley hissed and the giant whipped his head to her, lips flushed, Dent's blood running down his chin. He still stared at her as he licked his lips, almost defiant as he leaned back down and nudged the man's head to the side with his nose, lips hesitating in that almost kiss on his smooth skin before he bit down sharply. He could feel how hard his Harvey was for him, he could feel the man's pulse in his throat and in his prick and the giant vampire shifted just enough so that there was no mistaking how badly he wanted this too.

_'No one gets to have you, not the payaso, not the girl. Me. You are mine, mi alma'_

"Okay." The Joker shifted to sit up straight, clearing his throat. "Okay... that's good enough. Right, Harl?"

She wasn't paying attention. No one was paying attention to him and the man stood suddenly, stomping one of his feet on the floor, hard. Hard enough to kick up dust from the floorboards.

 ** _"RIGHT, HARL?!"_**  
"Eh.. r-right!" She squeaked out, straightening and shot a panicked look to Bane and Harvey, both men snapped instantly out of their trance-like state of feeding.

The bigger vampire was up suddenly, not yet pulling down his mask as he looked down at the spent man, two bleeding puncture marks on his either side of his throat and he really did look like Heaven. Instinctively he offered a big gloved hand to the still blown looking Harvey, glancing to the Joker as he didn't expect it to be taken.

But it was.

Harvey let out a little breath as he hoisted himself up, squeezing that big hand for a moment as he gathered his bearings.

"Okay, you know what. Bedtime. I've had enough and _THAT'S_ **NEVER** going to happen _**AGAIN!!!**_ " The green-haired vampire barked, gesturing emphatically with both hands at his second and third in command, still seething as he whirled away from all three of them and stormed off to his suite.

\- - -

"You... started it. I mean, every single time? You start some shit and then get mad at it?" Bruce murmured sleepily, rubbing a hand over his face. "Aren't you several hundred years old?"

"Yes? And yes. What's the point? I don't look a day over thirty-sixxxx..." The clown said, batting his eyelashes.

"And do you don't act a day over fifteen."

The Joker laughed at that, though it sounded a little forced and it was as he rubbed his hand roughly through his lover's hair.

"Aren't you just a _FUNNY_ scamp! You're just _HILARIOUS,_ aren't you! Funny boyyyy..."  
"Stop..." The halfling said with a tilt, pushing his hand away.

\- - -

Harley looked at the two and then at the Joker's suite door, letting out a little breath; well, that was still kinda hot but it was very clear to *her* at least, what was going on there. 

The biggest vampire had tugged his mask back down over his mouth, chest still heaving a bit as he composed himself, back turned to the others. The Joker was furious... he could feel it, feel the man's rage casting a shadow over the room. Without being summoned, he turned, looking to Harvey, who was buttoning his shirt back up, another cigarette in his mouth before entering the clown's suite without knocking.

This was something that Harvey nor Harleen would have dared to do, not yet at least.

The door slammed and the two younger vampires jumped and it was the blonde who turned to Two-Face for information.

"Uhh... What's THAT all about?" She murmured with a jerk of her thumb to the door and suddenly there was a loud crash of something breaking or being thrown and both of them shared near identical looks of surprise.

"I know you guys have yer thing but... Was it like.... _ya know_... Them two _first_?"  
Harvey stared at her, hand in his pocket around the coin and he shrugged.

"I don't have nothin' with him and... I can't tell ya shit about what they _were._.." He cleared his throat as there was another crash, followed by a growl. "... or _are_." He murmured, inhaling the last breath of his cigarette before he found a table to butt it out on.

Inside of the room, Bane slammed the door shut, hands balled into fists as he struggled with the desire throttle his master.  
_'WHY PAYASO!! WHY DO YOU DO THIS!!?'_ He mentally roared, shaking as the tall creature began to laugh, whirling around to smirk at the intruder.

The eerie part, between the sounds of conflicts and growling, were the lack of words. Just heaved breaths and Harvey stared at the door as if he could will it to burst into flames, then turned to Harley.

"You smoke?"  
"Weed, like, a _ton_."

He shot her a sidelong look like ' _no kidding_ ' and offered a cigarette regardless, which she took.

' _For you and your husband of circumstance, ungrateful fool! Pining over that two-faced MESS._ ' The clown hissed into his head and Bane picked up a small, ornate table by the door and twisted it between his hands, like the poor cornice of every roof of every damn safe house they'd stayed in. The Joker balked out a laugh at this terrific show of weakness.  
_'Celosooo'_ Bane hissed back, growling aloud as he stomped towards the Joker. He could kill him. He WANTED to kill him, a thousand times.

But he couldn't. He wouldn't. He wasn't able to lay a finger on the menace not just for fear of repercussion, but even now, he held a standard of honor... even for this thing.

 _'I wanted him'_  
_'I know that.'_

They stood face to face, the Joker's hands on his hips, somehow not looking in the slightest bit bothered and Bane, heaving, enraged, filled with desperate fury.

 _'You still do.'_ The clown continued and the behemoth threw his head back and let out a scream of a roar as the Joker began to laugh manically.

It almost sounded musical, but to Harvey, it sounded a little too passionate for his frustrated, paranoid brain.

\- - -

The Joker couldn't continue this part of the story, because of how hard he was laughing, banging his fist on Bruce's shoulder.

"Seriously."

And he tried, he really did, gasping for breath as he went full hysterical, nearly flailing at the thought of ever being the throes of passion with Bane. OR Harvey for the fact of the matter.

 _'Seriously.'_ Bruce repeated, this time in his head and was answered this time with more tinkling laughter.  
_'Hooohonoohoohoooboy....'_

And Batman groaned.

\- - -


	7. I May Snap When I Move Close

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Harvey has been steadily avoiding the Bane of his existence for several weeks after a miscommunication (or really, lack of communication)... and maybe they finally have a moment to address what is going on. I

"Did Harvey really think that you and Bane had gotten... intimate?" The raven haired halfling asked, shaking his head at the mental image. Ugh.

"Yeah... but I think only half the time..." The Joker replied, waggling his eyebrows.

"That was bad." 

"Oh, come _on!!!_ " 

 

\- - - 

 

Two-Face had regressed quite massively, a glower set on his face, jaw locked. He didn't seem to look at anyone as they spoke or he responded as if he was looking somehow past them instead of at them. 

 

He didn't know what to feel, but it was easier to curl into the womb of despair, easier to get friendly with discomfort. Easier to listen to the needling voice in his head that told him that this whole charade would have been better had he not been turned into this creature if he'd just been able to writhe to death on the sidewalk so many years ago... instead of *this*. 

 

Harley, due to her innate charm, had been the only one that Harvey would acknowledge if at all, nodding at her when she spoke at him. She was... decent. Maybe she didn't deserve this life either but at least she seemed happy. 

 

The party was a day away, the custom suits had arrived some weeks ago but Dent still hadn't bothered with opening the twine-wrapped box. He didn't want to think about being there, being measured, being bitten...

 

He ground his teeth together at that, eyes squeezing shut and let out a growl, one hand clenching into a fist as he went for another cigarette and found his pack empty. 

 

"Goddamnit..." The scarred man rumbled, glancing at his bedroom door, not wanting to go out but not wanting to be without some kind of pacification. He'd avoided Bane entirely and sure, it was petty but Harvey couldn't stand to look at the guy, let alone have to be near him... Even the thought of the behemoth made his stomach start to ache, his neck start to throb. 

 

To think that he was just there as entertainment, that he was here to spice up some bored vampire love life or something. It did make sense, the Joker was a jerkoff and Bane had always been so intense. Why not use him as a distraction, a pawn to make the other jealous. Hell, even HARLEEN got to bear witness to it and suddenly Harvey was filled with the sick rage he'd been fighting with for the last few weeks. 

 

This wasn't _his_ problem. It was _THEIR_ problem. 

 

But why did it feel like it was? Why was it dragging him down? Why couldn't the clown just fucking be done with him? Why did Bane have to play along? _Did he HAVE to play along?_  

 

Why did Bane have to _fucking_... string him along? 

 

The anger drained from him and Harvey pressed his forehead to his door, not ready to walk out. 

 

_Why._

 

 

 

He thought back to that night, sitting on the floor in Harley's suite, elbows on his knees as he leaned against the frame of the bed she was lounging on. 

 

"Do you know any Spanish?" 

She shrugged, tipping her head to the side. 

"Ya know, I know enough. Why?" 

 

Harvey ran a hand through his hair, hand sliding to the back of his neck which he gripped as he sighed. 

"What does _'mi cielito'_ mean?" 

 

The blonde let out an 'hmm', giving it a thought and Harv put out his cigarette on the floor, next to the the seven he'd churned through. He'd heard the door to the Joker's suite slam open and then shut again and it'd made him flinch but he'd made no other acknowledgment of it but that. 

 

"Ehh.. It means _'my sky'_? No! _'my heaven'_ , why?"

 

"No reason, just thought I heard it a while back." He murmured, reaching down to get another cigarette-- only to find he was out. 

 

 

 

 

Just like now and again, he was furious, fist going against the door before he let out a growled breath, twisting the knob and throwing it open with a **WHAM!** to find the Bane of his existence standing only a few yards away, his head whipping towards the sound... and then Harvey let out a surprised breath, blinking once before he pulled the door back shut with a slam and locked it. 

 

_Like locking it mattered._

 

Two-Face let out a groan, leaning back against the frame for a moment, then pushing away, deciding that it was still too close.... and then he looked back as if he could see the behemoth through it.

 

This pain was unbelievable. It felt raw, gouging. He swallowed back a panicked noise and sat down heavily on his bed, head in his hands. Even his coin hadn't helped. He'd gotten so frustrated at _HEADS HEADS HEADS HEADS_ that he'd had to throw the goddamn talisman and of course, scrambled after it like a desperate fool.

 

He _was_ a desperate fool. 

 

The box finally caught his attention and Harvey tugged petulantly at the twine holding it together, pulling the big square lid off with little struggle. 

 

The suit was, of fucking course, two-toned, split dead center, down the middle. 

But it was gorgeous. It was smart. Almost dapper. Black on one side, very neat and white with black pinstripes down the other. It was the nicest article of clothing he'd set hands on... but he could feel his temple throb as it dawned on him that every part of this suit, down to the goddamn boxers was split, divided. 

_Two-Faced._

He wanted to throw the damn thing to the ground, tear it right down it's middle but paused... No. 

He would put this 'gift' on, he'd wear it with as much pride as he could muster-- if that stupid cruel bastard wanted to show him off, then fine. 

 

Setting the suit back down, the scarred man tipped his head, noticing that the only part of this ensemble that was a solid color was the dark blue folded handkerchief in the bright white striped pocket. Even the tie was split, blue like the pocket-cloth and bright, almost blood red on the other. Looked good. It stood out a bit, but it looked good. 

Maybe... just _maybe_ , he'd get someone else to notice him... And maybe Bane would notice and it would make the bigger man furious.

 

The thought made Harvey smirk and he went for a cigarette again, remembering he had none, then looked at the door. 

 

_Why_ would it make Bane furious though? 

 

He pulled the coin from his pocket and rolled it across his fingers, flipping it and catching it in the air and dropped it back to his pocket before he could look at it. 

 

Damned if he didn't know what he'd called before he'd caught it and decided against more cigarettes for now. 

 

\- - - 

 

"Did he end up going?"

"Like he had a choice!" The Joker barked, letting out another laugh. "Please, my darling, don't get me started again, I'll burst.." He giggled, laying heavily against his lover. 

 

\- - -  

 

It was hard not to stare at the other three as they were ferreted off to this event. Harvey had not left his room for weeks save for to feed and get more smokes, certainly not until they were all summoned to go and it was distracting to suddenly be face to face with the other three vampires as he'd never seen them before. 

 

The Joker, who was already hard to look at was even more extravagant, dressed in a very trim fitting purple, green and gold accented suit, long coat tails, spats, gloves-- hell he almost jingled as he gestured emphatically... Pocket watch, rings, all sorts relics collected over time. He, begrudgingly, was really almost attractive to behold, gloved hands pressing together and up to his lips as he surveyed his approaching clan. 

 

Harley looked, well, great, this was probably the classiest she was ever gonna get and her hair! He had to give her some kinda kudos for the split down the middle, the red and black suited her well. She twirled with a giggle, glittery red and black gown moving with her. Well, damn. She could clean up and held open her clutch, wiggling a pack of Harvey's cigarettes before tossing them to him with a wink. She was a goddamn doll. 

 

And then there was Bane. 

 

The three of them turned their heads towards the massive man, his gloved hands folded behind his back as he stood and Harvey fumbled the pack of cigarettes, dropping them to the floor before picking them up quickly, his eyes widening as he snapped his mouth shut. 

Somehow, with MORE clothing on his body, he was that much more alluring. His suit was the same light gray of snow clouds and it made him look even bigger than he already was. A white dress shirt underneath a big broad vest and his tie... and the handkerchief...

 

Two-Face's brow lifted a little, Harvey inwardly irritated at himself for being unable to keep his expressions in check. 

The _fuck_ did they have to match for!? 

He glanced quickly at the head vampire and his eyes narrowed again as he found the clown smirking at him. 

 

_'What's wrong, not your color?'_ He murmured to Two-Face his head and watched the shorter man hunch his shoulders with how tense he suddenly was. _'Looks good on ***him**...' _

 

Harvey whirled around as if to head back to his room but the Joker tut-tutted rather loudly and the shortest of the three men pivoted back to face forward. 

 

"Everyone behave yourselves, capiche? Do pretty much the opposite of what I would do." The bright-green haired man glanced at Bane, silent and heaving and then to Harvey, tense and grimacing and grinned wider. _Good._  "Harley?" The Joker held out his hooked arm to the short woman and tipped his head to the side. "Let's slay 'em all!" 

 

\- - - 

 

It was.. very stunning to watch the way all of these other creatures fawned of the Joker. The way he moved gracefully through them, gesturing between Harley, Harvey, and Bane-- he acted in a strange way as if he was proud of his clan and the rest of entranced vampires gazed upon these elusive three in kind. 

 

Wherever the elder vampire went, so did the swarm of swooning folk... but it finally allowed Bane a moment to shift in his suit, a minute to breathe. He scanned the room for Harvey and found the other man standing against the wall almost opposite him, _big surprise,_ hands jammed in his pockets, surely he was touching his coin. 

 

For the past few weeks, (it had been five) the behemoth had not allowed himself to think of the scarred man, which had been more difficult than he'd imagined it would be... Trying to focus on his anger, which had settled to a simmer with his master, to propel him forward, but it was guilt that fueled him, guilt that kept him from bothering the already perturbed man. 

 

What could he say? 

 

How could he even know that Harvey thought such a vile, foolish, horrid, disgusting, low-class--

 

\- - - 

"Look, I get it, you guys have never. He's like a big... brother."

"More like a big puppy."

Bruce tipped his head to the side. 

" _Huge_ puppy." 

"Right! I mean, you've seen his dick--"

" **JOKER!!!** " The halfling roared and sunk a sharp bite into his lover's shoulder. 

\- - - 

 

He watched Harvey staring off, attention caught every few moments by the flash of fabric or the twirl of a body... but the distance between them was still so agonizing... Had he said too much? Had he done too much? Couldn't his _Vida_ tell? How much he was needed? Couldn't he feel it too? 

 

The thought of giving into his baser, more restrained urges filled him with embarrassment and the biggest vampire in the place tipped his head back, glancing from under his mask up at the elaborate chandelier of in this grand room. 

 

_How could he have...?_

 

_But didn't Harvey..._

 

Bane let out a heavy breath through his nostrils and when he looked back to the scarred vampire, he saw his retreating form, digging in his coat pocket surely for his pack of cigarettes and automatically started after him. The crown of other vampires split like the Red Sea for the behemoth, staring up at his steady push forward, away from the hustle, the bustle. 

 

Fortune smiled on the two men, whether the yet knew it as their master was well too involved with the sound of his own voice, with spinning the tales of his trials of the last several decades to be truly bothered with their impending confrontation. 

 

\- - - 

 

"Why bother with them at all?" The halfling murmured, brow furrowing yet again.

"What don't you get, my darling? Do you think I wanted to sit there and see them love each other while I had nothing?" 

 

Bruce blinked at him, his brow still furrowed but his stare softening and he finally let out a long breath. 

 

"How long?" _'Had you been alone...?'_ The thought to his partner, letting out another sigh as he felt a wave of guilt. 

"For my entire life, you _fool_ , until the moment I saw you." The Joker murmured aloud, smiling wryly down at his lover. 

 

\- - - 

 

The lit cigarette hung from between his lips and Harvey leaned heavily against one of the several Ionic columns peppered around this vast space, arms folded over the edge of the railing. He tensed as he felt the air shift with the bigger vampire's presence and felt himself want to shrink. He didn't want to have hunched so obviously, didn't want to want to flee, didn't want to feel so goddamn excited even though it was tinged with dread. 

 

And he certainly didn't say anything, opting to keep up with the game he'd been playing for the last few weeks. Ignore, abhor, think about how much you hate the clown, smoke another cigarette. Try not to flip the goddamn coin. Don't... think about him. It. _Anything_. 

 

...But it was hard and even being several yards away still, the two of them being alone on the patio only lent to being able to _FEEL_ the other that much more. Harvey couldn't help how heavily he sighed out his breath, pulling the cigarette from his mouth and rolling it, instead of the coin between his thumb and pointer finger, already fidgeting. 

 

When he could feel the bigger man nearly behind him, Two-Face straightened, or tried to, endeavoring to make himself look larger and brought the smoke back to his mouth, some of it creeping through his exposed cheek. 

 

"Whatd'ya want..." The shorter man managed to croak out, his words exhaled a lot less harsh than he'd intended. He sounded... tired, run down... _Sad_. 

 

Finding his voice, let alone a reason to use it was rare for the behemoth but this was important. 

 

" _Har-vey._ " The name was exhaled heavily and Bane felt his stomach lurch. He wanted to touch the other man, to close the distance. To _anything_... The sensation of that body beneath his, the way the scarred man was holding onto him, just as desperate. 

 

"What..."? Two-Face's voice sounded almost faint, the word creaked out of him as he struggled with deciding whether or not to face forward but one of those massive hand's assisted his decision and Bane turned the scarred man almost too easily to face him. 

 

" _Cariño_... Why you do this?" His hand dropped from the other despite how badly he wanted to keep touching him. 

" _Me?_ What did _I_ do? Get in your goddamn **WAY**?"  His brow lowered, still not able to meet that masked face and he took a quick drag from his cigarette, flicking it away with agitation. "You worked up Joker just enough, huh?" 

"Ah?" 

 

Bane stared at him, hands almost moving to his shoulders but instead to the railing that Harvey was leaning back against, hands on either side, effectively trapping him. He either didn't seem to notice or didn't seem bothered, lifting his chin up defiantly as he finally stared up into that mask.

 

"You heard me. You're gonna..." Two-Face swallowed, steeling himself to carry on. He was pissed and that was just the tip of the iceberg. 

"--You're gonna fuckin'..." He couldn't even say it, looking away quickly from the bigger man, his jaw flexing. 

_'You're gonna drink from me and then fuck **him**?' _ It was so much easier to say it in his head, he'd _screamed_ it in his head, he'd agonized over it, repeated it over and over; how he'd hiss the words to the behemoth, slice right through him... but he couldn't. 

Harvey couldn't even get the sentence past his throat, choked up from the mere mental imagery all over again and dropped his head.

 

And Bane felt like he'd been hit by a bus. He'd... _BEEN_ hit by a bus before and this was easily as overwhelming; he felt struck and would have taken a step back had he not been holding onto that rail. 

_'No. No. Nonononono. No. No. No. No. Never. No.'_ Was the steady mental mantra of the bigger vampire, shaking is head slowly from side to side. 

 

" **No.** " 

 

Harvey shook his head _'no'_ as well, a wide frown crossing his despicably handsome face. He wanted to believe Bane... but he also wanted to believe that he'd been betrayed... but... 

They weren't anything. Were they. How could he even be bothered with feeling like this? How dare he? 

 

"Look-- it's not my business..." The scarred man breathed coolly, holding up his hands in an almost defensive posture, forcing an indifferent look on his face, but his jaw was flexing, his composure was failing within the proximity of the bigger vampire. "I--" 

 

" **Basta**." _'Stop, stop, please, stop, listen, please...'_ Bane was practically begging though he'd only exhaled one word, his eyes squeezing shut for a second before he lifted both hand's to Harvey's face, grasped his jaw and drew his head back up-- Oh how for once, he wished he wore no mask, but leaned down those many inches to touch his head to the other's. 

 

"Har-vey..." _'My everything, my soul... No...'_ He could feel the other man shaking, the tension, the struggle with wanting to go liquid and wanting to push back but the behemoth refused to relent this time--- the payaso was not here **now**. "Mi _Elegido_..." 

 

"W..What?" The scarred man finally looked up, looked at where he knew those eyes, always watching him, were staring right back. "You keep saying all of this stuff in Spanish and I don't..." He shrugged as he trailed off, swallowing and very reluctantly, his hands slid up over the massive one's on his jaw and neck-- it wouldn't be easy to pry those hands from him, but did he really want to, did he. 

 

"My love. My chosen one. My soul. My heaven..." Bane began to rumble out, fingers spreading, wanting to pull him closer. "How could you... ever think? That I could want anything more than _you_?" He murmured in a hoarse whisper, shifting so now forehead and nose pressed together. _Damn this mask_... 

 

Two-Face sucked in a clipped breath at that, his brow lifting as his eyes widened a little. 

He was a fool. A great big fool...

"I... I dunno.. I'm stupid..." He exhaled, feeling a little bit dizzy as he pushed his scarred jaw into Bane's hand. "So stupid..." 

"Mmhhh..." He was silenced with the barest graze of that masked mouth touching his, just a tingle, a prelude to something much, much greater. "Come _Tonto_... You must learn then..." 

 

As the bigger vampire stepped back, the shorter one stepped forward, holding onto Bane's arms as he nearly stumbled towards him. 

 

"Heh... ya got me all fucked up..." Harvey breathed coyly, a very rare grin on his face as he imagined what it would be like to really feel those lips on his. What it would be like to unwrap the giant from this suit, to finally taste him again... It'd been so _long._  

 

A strangled sort of growl left the behemoth and he stared back down at the other, feeling just as overwhelmed as Harvey was. An onslaught of mental imagery, of pressing Harvey down to a bed for once, instead of a floor or a rooftop, of putting kisses and bite marks all over his body 

 

"We... _uhh_... Gotta stop..." Two-Face exhaled, his breath coming a bit quicker, gnawing at the inside of the good half of his bottom lip, then glanced at the bustling party, bodies he could still see moving and otherwise occupied. 

For a moment, for one sneaky moment, he thought of tipping his head to the side, giving Bane some of his throat... The thought sent yet another jolt of exhilaration through his body and he watched the bigger man tense... 

 

Those gigantic hands were on his waist, wrapped around him and that masked mouth was pressed to the left side of his neck and Harvey went weak against the railing, knowing his jugular was throbbing. Knowing his dick was just as hard as it had been, shamelessly needy like so many goddamn times before,  but right now it felt perfect. He almost said please, he almost asked for it and could feel the skin on his throat getting damp from the way Bane was panting against his him. 

 

"Soon, Har-vey..." The bigger vampire purred, pressing a kiss to his jugular through his mask and pulled back, now, for the first time since stepping outside grateful that he had his luchador mask on. 

The Joker would surely be able to tell if he'd feasted on his love, desperation plus a light-colored suit would be a massive giveaway. No it would be worth the wait... "Sooner than later..." 

 

The shorter man nodded, reaching up to grasp at the masked man's tie, tug him back down, pressing their foreheads together. 

 

"Not _his_... _**Mine**_." Harvey murmured, nodding once against that masked skull. 

 

Bane let out a low groan, nodding back. 

"Si... si si si si si..." 

 

\- - - 

 

The Joker let out a sigh, rolling off of his partner to tuck up against his side, head on his shoulder. 

"Wanna hear about me becoming an even more bitter piece of shit until I was graced by your next-to-Godliness presence?"

 

Bruce's eyebrows rose and he tipped his cheek against the top of the other man's head. 

 

"Oh, how soon until you start talking about me..?" 

"I dunno, another chapter or two..." The Joker tittered, grinning against that big, broad shoulder.

 

\- - - 


	8. I'm Still Fighting For Peace

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Time keeps ticking on and Harvey and Bane get closer and closer to their kind of freedom-- as the time where the Joker and the Batman cross paths approaches.

 

 

It was a night like several hundred before it, nice big juicy full moon, heavy in a humid sky, Bane was leaning back against his 'side' of the roof as it was now considered, deciding against his vest tonight... and Harvey was on the other side, leaning back on his elbows, facing the big man.

  
There was no way he was able to keep the smirk from his face, openly staring at the bigger vampire. He'd shed plenty of layers himself, down to an undershirt and slacks, not even bothering with a belt when it was this hot and the humidity only added to the energy between them.  
  
This routine they'd found themselves in was, for now, just enough to sate the ever-growing need... A lot of the ability for the two vampires to spend even these moments had much to do with the way their master was deteriorating... Certainly, he still fed, he still fought. He still put on his makeup but the panache was fading, the passion for the performance was dwindling.  
  
Harvey loved it. In fact, with every new phase of the moon they saw, with each '...eh' that left their master, he became more pleased. Payback was a bitch, 'eh'?

 

 

  
In the meantime, these two were able to take advantage of the small stretches of time that they had alone. Harley was in a sort of constant state of mini-distress over the Joker being unhappy for no specific reason, poor kid. That sucked. For her.  
  
Pulling his coin from his pocket, Two-Face's smirk widened as he watched the behemoth across from him clench his hands against the cornice and his smirk went into a bit of a smile, eyebrow arching as he rolled it over his knuckles.  
  
Times like this, they could relish in the 'sooner' rather than the 'later'... but still, there were boundaries, lines not to be crossed. Harvey had still yet to feel Bane's lips on his and though it made him ache, the way they worked around it was fairly satisfying. It was an unspoken truth, that there was a point of no return and the climate of the clan was still not appropriate for that plunge.  
  
Oh, but they wanted to.  
  
Harvey glanced down at his knuckles, at the coin rolling over his fingers, his grin widening. He knew that when he looked up --  
  
"Oh hey, how you doin'..?" He murmured around his cigarette, smiling up at Bane and he could feel a wave of elation wash over him as the bigger vampire slid his hands back into their familiar place of boxing him in.  
"Mmh."  
"That good?" Harvey tipped his head to the side, coy grin on his face as he looked at that face. Someday... soon. He'd be able to cover that whole head in kisses... maybe a bite or two.  
  
Bane let out a low noise at that, reaching up and grasping the scarred man's coin, rolling it across his own gloved fingers, emulating the tick that he'd studied for so many years. He was actually pretty good at it... and Harvey managed not to feel TOO much anxiety as he watched his precious talisman...  
  
"What must you decide tonight, Har-vey?" The behemoth breathed, rolling the coin, watching the shorter man's eyes follow the shine.  
  
"Oh.. uh.." He leaned back against the cornice, his brow line lifting as he stayed transfixed on his coin. "Whether or not I'm gonna finally steal a kiss from under that mask or make you give me one..." Harvey murmured coolly, eyes flicking from the coin to where he knew Bane's were and he looked a little smug and he flicked his still burning cigarette away.  
  
It was a good look for him, Bane could confirm.  
  
"How will you do that, Cielito..." The bigger man murmured, reaching up to cup Harvey's jaw. They had gotten this far... this close without too much fear of repercussion...  
  
"Mmh..." Two-Face tipped his head against that gloved hand and grinned up, his fangs much more visible when he smiled. "Got a couple'a ideas..." Boldly, pressed the side of his mouth to the inside of Bane's hand, eyes still locked on his mask. _'I can't wait...'_ He thought, that one eyelid fluttering shut as he imagined what it would be like to feel this hot, this humid from their own mating.  
  
"Nnhh..." His eye flicked back open and Harvey let out a soft chuckle at the noise Bane rumbled out.  
"Soon..." _'Hopefully... you will be ready for me..'_ The behemoth thought back, pushing that much more forward as his hand was kissed again, one big thigh against one of Harvey's solid but smaller ones.  
Two-Face panted out a laugh at that, opening his mouth to let his teeth graze against the bigger vampire's palm. _'We'll figure somethin' out... These big fingers might help, huh..'_ He shivered at his own thought and Bane let out a growl at that, pushing even closer, the breath huffing out of his nostrils.  
There was very little he could do to respond at the moment, one hand sliding to the shorter man's waist and around to his lower back, pressing him forward... They certainly weren't at a point where they could outright mate, though the desire was detectable, it was strong... The fact that they could and had been able to communicate mentally from even the get go was a huge sign of that... and Bane let out a little sigh, his hand spreading on Two-Face's back, holding him closer.  
How many times had he just wanted to be NEAR the man... To touch him? Graze by him? Hold him? Shield him? Protect him? Smell him? Oh... to taste him again...  
"Bane..." The shorter vampire shuddered other man's name, which was a rare move and he felt the man that would someday be his lover shiver back in kind.  
"Har-vey..."  
  
It was moments like these that made the struggle they were in very tangible, very real.  
  
_'I want your mouth...'_ And a whine left Harvey's throat as he kissed at the bigger vampire's hand again and again, _'I want to feel it, everywhere...'_  
  
Bane let out a growl at that, thinking about actually pulling his mask up just enough, letting Harvey slide it up and off. To feel those two-textured hands on his skin, to be able to bite into that flesh wherever he pleased. They couldn't... there would be no stopping after the kiss. No no.  
  
Yes, moments like these were a little too strong for the two, still restrained by circumstance.  
  
And still more often than not interrupted, not maliciously, but inconveniently, by Ms. Harley Quinn... All while Harvey had just touched his lips to one of the behemoth's giant fingers.  
  
"Hey, Guys! Aww... Ohhhhh... awwwwww!" The messenger of unpleasantries made haste with laying out the next mission from their unhappy master, trying not to over-apologize for grinding to a halt something that shouldn't have been technically happening in the first place.  
  
\- - -  
"What now?"  
  
The Joker rolled to lie on his back, reaching up towards the ceiling as he stretched.  
"Hah... well, ya see... Harvey is probably one of the biggest babies you'll ever meet.. I mean, you, my sweet treat, are a right brat, but Harv... just makes it too easy to get under what's left of his skin..."  
"So...?" Bruce didn't look terribly impressed, but turned now, lying back on his side as he had at the beginning of this sordid tale.  
"So... You do the little things to really grind his gears."  
\- - -  
  
"I'm not wearing this."  
"Funny thing about that, half-stuff, I think you're gonna."  
  
Bane managed to stifle a growl as he stood a few yards behind the two shorter men, tensing up as soon as Harvey hunched his shoulders.  
  
"Look, Big Boy's got his outfit, Harls has hers... This is for you and you're gonna put it on and say thank you, right?" The clown's eyes narrowed as he pressed the pile of heinously colored nylon into Harvey's hands, stepping closer to him.  
  
Rolling his eyes like the petulant, irritated man-child he was, Two-Face took the bundle of color and grimaced, eyes flicking to the behemoth for a second--  
_'Goddamn him'  
'I know.'_  
\--Then back to the Joker. "Thank you."  
  
The elder vampire's eyes narrowed for a second before he cupped Harvey's scarred cheek and pat it.  
"Y'know, you're a human hemorrhoid, but you're our human hemorrhoid." He chirped with a cackle before pushing the slightly shorter man away from him and wheeling around to face Harley and Bane.  
  
"Okay, let's get this show on the road. Get dressed, we have to be at this strobe-lighted nightmare before we miss our chance at the target."  
"Who is this again, J?"  
"Some cunt of a mollusk of a man."  
  
Bane tipped his head to the side, eyes narrowing beneath his mask.  
  
"Yes, it's petty. Of COURSE, it's petty. Get dressed!!!" The Joker roared with a flail of his arms.  
  
The sooner they got to this location, the sooner he could drag that piece of shit around his own club and drain him of life. Probably wouldn't even bother drinking the rude little cunt, but watching him bleed out would be a gift.  
  
\- - -  
"Naturally... things did not pan out this way."  
Bruce's eyes narrowed as he stared at the other man.  
"You don't say."  
  
His lover shrugged with as innocent of a face he could muster.  
  
"Maybe he was drowned in a toilet? And maybe that toilet overflowed. I don't know. It was a looooooooong time ago."  
"It was... 30 years ago... you're what, over 300?"  
Another shrug and the green haired man turned to drape himself against his mate.  
"A lady never reveals her age."  
\- - -  
  
There had only been momentary peace in this venue, the few moments that Harvey got to sit next to what would be his mate, to feel, for just a second, that heavy hand squeeze his thigh... He knew no matter what, at this point, that Bane would find him attractive... even in this abomination of nylon and polyester. And though it didn't really matter to him at dual-face value, it added a little touch of self-confidence that had been broken by his damaged corporeal.  
  
The several guys staring at him in the club on the other hand.  
  
_'What the... hell?'_ Harvey thought as he got to his feet and immediately one of the men eyeing him approached.  
"Hey, you... How you doin'?" The blonde in similarly cheap looking tracksuit waltzed up to him, having the audacity to flick his finger against the scarred man's gold chain, kicking it up a little.  
"What the fuck..." Harvey breathed out in a low, surprised growl, eyebrow lifting as he stared at the man and turned to face him completely.  
"Oooh! Holy shit!" The blonde backpedaled into a wall of Bane, lifting his head against the chest he'd crashed into. "Ohhh... hey there." And he was back on, turning to face the masked man. At least THIS guy had the decency to wear a mask. Jesus.  
"Hey, hey, he's circled, get the fuck outta here," Two-Face growled, grabbing the cocky guy by his neon pink shoulder before Bane could crumple him into a ball and flung him away from the bar. No one seemed to give even a sort of a damn as the pushy scumbag hit the floor and sulkily picked himself up after a few pathetic moments.  
  
_'Circled?'_ The thought entered Harvey's mind and he whipped his head to look at the biggest man in the place.  
"S'nothin'... Let's see where the hell Joker is, ah?"  
  
Under his mask, Bane smirked as the shorter man pulled a cigarette from his pack and let it hang from his mouth. Finding the Joker would start with first noticing the water accumulating on the floor. Harvey naturally was the first and took a step back, nose crinkling as he stared at the continuous flow and a hand touched at Bane's arm. He was the first to be hoisted up and did his very damnedest to not lean too eagerly into the giant shoulder he was practically straddling...  
"Hn... Hey, there's Harl." The scarred man murmured, patting Bane's shoulder as he pointed to the woman who was whirling around, solo, clearly looking for their master and not yet finding him.  
  
She was scooped up on the opposite arm, a look of relief crossing her face and she grinned warily across to Two-Face.  
  
"Uhh, what the hell is going on?"  
"Ya got me, toots."  
  
Bane's hand pressed on the small of his back and Harvey squeezed his arm, mouth opening to say something as he was interrupted by the next stage of finding the Joker -- Which would be watching the man coolly walk out of the Men's room, drying his hands on a paper towel and dropping it to the already flooding floor casually.  
"LET'S GO." He barked, springing up too easily, like jumping over a saddle horse and onto the behemoth's shoulders.  
"Ya get him?" Harley asked, almost wincing as she looked at her strained master.  
"Yeah, yeah, let's go, this place is going to turn into a shit show, LITERALLY."  
  
Departing the club as chaos broke out inside, the Joker was the first to hop down, patting the big masked skull before he folded his arms behind his head and started to laugh.  
  
"Well, that was actually kind of... fun!"  
  
Harley was the next to slip down, patting Bane's big arm in thanks before she skipped ahead and held her hooked arm out the master vampire.  
"Good, good! You need to have some fun..." She began to chatter, the two of them walking casually away from the people spilling out of the club.  
  
Behind them, Harvey tensed against the massive man's shoulder, not ready to get off of his arm just yet. This was rare, this opportunity to be so bodily close to Bane without being interfered with too much.  
  
"I..."  
  
That big fingered hand spread against his back and Two-Face relaxed a bit.  
  
"Just... gimme a minute..." He exhaled, draping his arm across Bane's wide shoulders. The behemoth would give him all the time he needed and they both knew it.  
  
\- - -  
  
"And what was this over?" The vigilante asked, rubbing both hands over his face and let out a breath.  
  
"Oh, like I can remember, just know, my darling, that it was over something incredibly petty but surely he deserved to die." The clown purred, pulling Bruce's hands away from his face. "What's the matter?"  
  
"This is sad! Okay? You tortured them for what, a whole lifetime? Somebody could have been born and DIED in the time that they've waited." He growled out, staring at his green haired mate.  
  
"People DID die in that time!" The Joker chirped, patting his cheek. "And...  Ehhh, what can I say, I go for the slow burn my dear and it worked out beautifully for everybody in the end..."  
  
Bruce scoffed, eyes narrowing at the Joker.  
  
"I mean, the day I met you, they practically turned into teenagers."  


 

"Go on." Was the clipped answer from the black haired man as he shifted and sat back up, interest a little piqued.


End file.
